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← Dementia UK

2025-03-31-accounts

Trustees’ Annual Report

and consolidated financial statements

For the financial year 2024-25

Company number: 02944156 Charity number: 1039404 OSCR number: SC 047429

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Contents

Chair and Chief Admiral Nurse/
Chief Executive Officer’s report
4
Trustees’ Annual Report,
including the strategic report
6
Dementia UK: the specialist
dementia nursing charity
6
Our vision, mission and values
8
About dementia
9
Gail’s story
10
Achievements, performance and plans
12
Here when people need us
12
Spotlight: ‘Dementia: what next?’
– our online sessions
16
The impact of our Helpline
and virtual clinics
19
Spotlight: Dementia at work
20
Admiral Nurses: a lifeline across the UK
22
Supporting younger people
25
Spotlight: The Young Dementia Network’s
‘Share your experiences’ project
28
Developing our Admiral Nurses
30
Evidencing our impact
33
The value of research
36
Campaigning for change
39
Spotlight: ‘Put dementia on the agenda’:
our General Election campaign
42
Spreading the word
44
Spotlight: ‘My life with dementia’:
Dementia UK’s podcast
46
Elliott’s story
48
Individual giving: changing lives
with every donation
50
Spotlight: Growing regular giving: our
face-to-face fundraising programme
52		 Our amazing fundraisers
54
Spotlight: Dementia UK’s ThankAthon
56
Working in partnership
58
Spotlight: Our partnership with
Nationwide Building Society
60
Shara’s story
62
Nurturing our supporters
64
Our people and culture
68
Spotlight: The Sunday Times Best
Places to Work Awards
72
IT: keeping our systems running
74
Governance, compliance and risk
76
Making the most of our funds
78
Financial review
80
Structure, governance and management
81
Trustee recruitment, appointment
and induction
83
Principal risks and uncertainties
84
Reserves policy
85
Investment policy
86
Key relationships
87
Energy and carbon reporting
87
Methodology
88
Reference and administrative details
88
Independent Auditor’s report
90
Consolidated statement of
financial activities
94
Consolidated balance sheets
95
Consolidated statement of cash flows
96
Notes to the financial statements
97
Thank you
118

4 Dementia UK Annual Report 2024-25

Chair and Chief Admiral Nurse/Chief Executive Officer’s report

Dementia is a huge and growing health crisis. It is the leading cause of death in the UK, with nearly one million people living with the condition. It doesn’t just affect the person with the diagnosis – everyone around them is impacted in some way.

Too often, we hear from families who are facing the fear and confusion of dementia alone. But with your help, we are taking great strides towards our vision of specialist dementia support for everyone who needs it.

In 2024-25, we supported more families than ever before, with 476 dementia specialist Admiral Nurses in post (July 2025). More than 46,000 people accessed our expert guidance through our Helpline and virtual appointments. We ensured support for families in their local areas by maintaining Admiral Nurse services and creating new ones in the community, hospitals and care homes. We are also working with our partner Nationwide to deliver dementia clinics in 200 of its branches, bringing our support to more parts of the UK.

This has been a year of innovation for Dementia UK. Highlights included the launch of our online sessions, ‘Dementia: what next?’, to provide families with vital post-diagnostic support; and our first podcast series, ‘My life with

dementia’, sharing the stories of people living with or caring for someone with the condition. These showcase the expertise of Admiral Nurses and reassure families that they are not alone.

The General Election provided an invaluable opportunity to call on the political parties to put dementia firmly on the agenda. We rallied our community of passionate supporters to contact their candidates, and as a result, had many positive conversations with MPs about why they should make dementia a priority. We will build on this to keep pushing for better dementia care and support.

Behind everything we do is our workforce of highly skilled and dedicated staff, who all share our vision and values. We recognise them as our biggest asset and are delighted to have been named as the best large charity to work for in the Sunday Times Best Places to Work Awards 2025. This recognises our commitment to ensuring every employee feels valued and supported and has the best possible experience of working at Dementia UK.

In the pages of this report, you can read more about how together, we have supported families during the past year. We are so proud of these achievements, which simply would not have been possible without our fantastic supporters and partners. Thanks to you, our annual income reached £31.4m, an incredible 39% increase on 2023-24. This will enable us

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to develop even more services and support for families affected by dementia.

The next year will see the launch of our strategy for 2025-30, which will underpin our work to offer families a lifeline when they need it most. It is a time of exciting growth and change for Dementia UK, every day bringing us closer to a world where no one faces dementia alone.

people who donate, fundraise, partner, pledge, campaign and volunteer. Thank you so much for your support, now and in the future – you are the heart of Dementia UK.

Dr Hilda Hayo

Chief Admiral Nurse and Chief Executive Officer

Professor David Croisdale-Appleby OBE Chair of Trustees

With the demand for our services growing by the day, we are indebted to you, the amazing

6 Dementia UK Annual Report 2024-25

Trustees’ Annual Report, including the strategic report

Dementia UK: the specialist dementia nursing charity

Every three minutes, someone develops dementia. Today, nearly one million people in the UK are living with the condition, and it doesn’t just impact the person with the diagnosis.

One in two of us will be affected by dementia in our lifetime – whether by caring for someone with the diagnosis, developing it ourselves, or both.

That is why Dementia UK is here. Our specialist nurses, known as Admiral Nurses, provide life-changing advice and support to anyone affected by dementia, whenever it is needed. From sharing practical tips for caring to offering compassionate emotional support and helping families plan for the future, they are there when people need them most.

Dementia UK Annual Report 2024-25

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As the UK’s only charity dedicated to specialist dementia nursing, we want every family to know we are there to support them for as long as they need us – whether it’s on our Helpline, through our virtual or face-to-face clinic appointments, or in the community.

We are here to make sure no one faces dementia alone.

“I love so many parts about my role as an Admiral Nurse. There is no greater reward than helping to lift the weight off a carer’s shoulders.”

Hannah, Consultant Admiral Nurse for Children and Young People

“My Admiral Nurse Liz was a beacon of light; she was the first person to actually listen to me and gave me hope when nobody else did.”

Peter, who lives with Alzheimer’s disease

8 Dementia UK Annual Report 2024-25

Our vision, mission and values

Our vision

A world where no one faces dementia alone – where everyone gets the specialist support they need.

Our mission

Our life-changing support is there for everyone affected by dementia.

Our dementia specialist Admiral Nurses give expert and compassionate support and advice: on our Helpline, in clinics, in hospitals, in the community and in other health and care settings, as well as through the information we provide.

We work alongside people affected by dementia to constantly improve the health and care systems they rely on. We use our clinical knowledge to influence public policy and service delivery, carry out vital research into dementia care, promote better awareness and understanding of dementia, and campaign for change across the UK.

Together, we can make sure no one faces dementia alone.

Our values

Collaboration

Working together makes us stronger. We listen to and collaborate with families living with dementia, clinicians, our colleagues, and our supporters and fundraisers. Every day, we learn from one another.

Compassion

We come to work to improve the lives of people affected by dementia. It’s why we approach everything we do, and everyone we talk to, with kindness, respect and support.

Ambition

We will do everything we can to help families affected by dementia feel more empowered. We’re resourceful and resilient: whatever the obstacles, we’ll try to find a way.

Integrity

We always aim to show integrity and accountability in all our work: from how we spend the money raised by our generous supporters to how we behave with colleagues, stakeholders and partners.

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About dementia

Nearly one million people in the UK are living with dementia. ~~Be~~

Over 70,000 people in the UK have young onset OO dementia – where symptoms develop before the age of 65. ~~A~~

Around 700,000 people in the UK provide unpaid care for someone with dementia.

Only 65% of people with suspected dementia have a formal diagnosis.

There many different types and causes of dementia. The most common are:

Common symptoms of dementia include:

----- Start of picture text -----
Dementia is the leading
cause of death in the UK.
----- End of picture text -----

10 Dementia UK Annual Report 2024-25

Gail’s story

On Valentine’s Day in 2019, my world changed forever. At 54 years young, I was diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease.

At first, I was numb. But in the following weeks and months, there were so many emotions – confusion, sadness, anger and a lot of self-pity. I started to withdraw from the world.

The post-diagnosis support was almost non-existent. I was given this life-altering news, handed some leaflets and expected to walk out of the doctor’s room as if nothing had happened. Nobody checked in on me in a meaningful way. Nobody even explained what the diagnosis meant. But perhaps worst of all, nobody asked me how I was coping emotionally. Sometimes you don’t need solutions; you just need a listening ear.

I started going to an in-person dementia support group. Talking to other people living with the condition was wonderful – I didn’t feel so alone.

At one of these sessions, a woman came and introduced herself to me. Her name was Maxine, and she told me she was a dementia specialist Admiral Nurse.

I told her I’d been struggling and she wrote down the phone number for Dementia UK’s Helpline and handed it to me. I put it into the back of my diary. But to be honest, I had no real intention of calling it. Asking for help has never come naturally to me.

“Maxine gives me time”

A few months down the line, I’d had a really bad experience with a medical professional. I was at my wits’ end. I don’t think my husband, John, was coping very well either. I opened up my diary and on the last page, I found Dementia UK’s Helpline number – so I rang it. A friendly voice at the other end told me she’d put me in touch with an Admiral Nurse in my area.

Soon after I received a call from a voice I recognised. It was Maxine. Talking with her, I instantly felt at ease. She was the first person throughout my journey to actually listen to what I had to say. She made an appointment to come around – the first of many.

The difference between Maxine and any other health professional I’ve seen is that she gives me time. I’m not rushed in and out. Her visits give me something to look forward to. I open the door and see a friendly face beaming back at me. She wraps her arms around me. You have no idea how much that hug means.

I wish everybody who had a dementia diagnosis could have access to an Admiral Nurse. It would make a hell of a difference.

Dementia UK Annual Report 2024-25

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“I am not my diagnosis”

My perspective has totally changed from when I was first diagnosed. The overwhelming response to dementia is negativity, but I’m still here and there’s so much I can do. I now dedicate so much of my life to things that bring me joy and meaning: creating art, wandering the local nature reserve with my dog Toby, and photographing the local wildlife.

My other outlet is writing. Starting a blog has helped immensely and I hope it helps others too. It’s so easy to get lost in a spiral of negativity after you receive a dementia diagnosis.

Yes, dementia sometimes gets the better of me – but it’s not the end. Rather, for me, it was the start of a new chapter.

You can read Gail’s blog at (>) dementiaalzheimers.home.blog

12 Dementia UK Annual Report 2024-25

Achievements, performance and plans

Here when people need us

Our Dementia UK Admiral Nursing services – including our Helpline, virtual clinic appointments, Consultant Admiral Nurses and Dementia at Work programme – ensure families affected by dementia can access the support they need, when they need it.

Our objectives for 2024-25

Our achievements

Over the last year, our Dementia UK Admiral Nurses provided a lifeline to more people than ever before. Our Helpline responded to

41,757 calls and emails, 364 days of the year (closed 25[th] December), providing specialist, compassionate advice and support to people affected by dementia throughout the UK. We also supported families through 4,689 videos and phone appointments in our virtual clinic.

To meet the increase in both volume and complexity of calls, we increased the number of Admiral Nurses on the Helpline, enabling us to answer the majority of calls immediately. When we cannot answer straight away due to call volume, we call back within 48 hours, ensuring families affected by dementia receive our expert support quickly.

Expanding our team of Admiral Nurses has enabled us to increase the number of virtual clinic appointments, which allow families to access specialist dementia support through prebooked phone or video calls. In addition to weekday daytime appointments, we now offer appointments until 7pm Monday-Wednesday, and on Saturdays from 10am-4pm.

Dementia UK’s Admiral Nurses also supported families through specialist services including regional clinics; clinics for the prison service; and services for members of the Professional Footballers’ Association and Rugby League Cares.

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Our ‘Dementia: what next?’ online sessions launched in November 2024. The sessions, which are hosted by Admiral Nurses, are aimed at families where there has recently been a diagnosis of dementia. You can read more about how this exciting new innovation is helping people affected by dementia on page 16.

Growing our teams

Our Admiral Nurse teams continue to grow. We are delighted to be increasing our support for families who often experience health inequalities through the recruitment of two new Admiral Nurses for Black, African and Caribbean communities. Admiral Nurse roles for the Chinese community and South Asian communities are currently in development.

This year, we significantly increased our team of Consultant Admiral Nurses: highly skilled nurses who specialise in supporting people experiencing specific, complex needs relating to dementia, many of whom face barriers

to care. In the past year, we have created additional roles in frailty and physical health, young onset dementia and Lewy body dementia.

We also grew our Dementia at Work Team, which leads the way in supporting people who are affected by dementia in the workplace. Across the year, we extended our pioneering work with and for employees, employers and customers affected by dementia. Please see page 20 for more information on our Dementia at Work programme.

Safeguarding vulnerable people

Safeguarding is paramount for us as a charity. All employees recognise the need to raise concerns if they suspect someone is vulnerable, and to consult one of our Admiral Nurses if necessary.

During 2024-25 we identified 580 safeguarding disclosures from contacts with our Helpline and virtual clinics: an average of 48 per month. They fall into three broad categories:

14 Dementia UK Annual Report 2024-25

We ensure these disclosures are dealt with in a supportive and compassionate manner and channels of escalation are explored as appropriate.

We use the data we capture to improve the support we provide as a charity and to review our internal policies and processes. We continue to share our experiences externally to help raise awareness amongst other professionals and charities of the situations facing families living with dementia.

The safeguarding disclosures raised in 2024-25 do not meet the threshold for reporting to the Charity Commission as we are supporting our beneficiaries who are experiencing safeguarding situations, as opposed to these situations resulting from the actions or omissions of Dementia UK.

Our expertise in supporting people with dementia and their families was recognised in a number of awards categories in 2024-25:

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What we’ll do next: our priorities for 2025-26

Expand the scope of specialisms within the Consultant Admiral Nurse Team, so that more families experiencing complex challenges can access support tailored to their specific needs.

Develop new pathways to improve access to the Consultant Admiral Nurse Teams for families facing dementia. This will include developing new clinic models within the Frailty and Physical Health Team and Young Onset Dementia Team, with regular reviews to ensure they are having a positive impact on the people we support.

Further develop and embed the LGBTQ+ Consultant Admiral Nurse Service within Dementia UK and ensure the service is known externally to people affected by dementia and stakeholders, including LGBTQ+ organisations, so members of the community know how to access our specialist support.

Improve accessibility to the Helpline and clinics service including through introducing an SMS service and live chat functionality; growing national Admiral Nurse support for Black, African and Caribbean communities and Chinese and South Asian communities; and developing specialist clinics for those with additional support needs, starting with British Sign Language assistance.

Dementia UK Annual Report 2024-25

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Spotlight ‘Dementia: what next?’ – our online sessions

Too often, people are left to cope with a dementia diagnosis alone, with many questions unanswered. Our new online sessions help address their worries and empower them to face the future.

On our Helpline, we hear every day from people who are left unsupported following a diagnosis of dementia. No one tells them what to expect next, or in the future. Often, they are not even told what the diagnosis means. Many carers are falling into crisis because they do not receive the guidance they need.

The concept for our new online sessions came from our recognition that too many families facing dementia are left without support. In response, we developed ‘Dementia: what next?’: a series of three sessions, hosted on Zoom, to address people’s most common questions and concerns following a diagnosis.

‘Dementia: what next?’ is a flagship model of support that no other dementia charity is offering. The sessions are aimed predominantly at families who have recently received a dementia diagnosis, but they are open to all, including professionals.

Our session themes

We identified three core themes for ‘Dementia: what next?’ based on what we hear on the Helpline, and what we think people need to know about living with dementia:

The sessions are hosted by an Admiral Nurse, with a prerecorded presentation followed by a Q&A session. Attendees can ask questions anonymously using the chat function, and following the presentation, the Admiral Nurse answers as many as possible.

We launched the 90-minute sessions in November 2024. They initially took place on the first three Friday mornings of the month, repeated monthly. In response to requests for evening sessions from people who cannot attend during the day, we then added slots on Tuesday evenings. People are welcome to join any or all of the sessions, consecutively or spread over several months.

Attendee feedback

In the first two months of the programme, 419 people attended at least one ‘Dementia: what next?’ session. The busiest session had 114 attendees, with session three – Planning for the future – proving the most popular overall.

We collected participants’ feedback on the sessions through a survey, with an overwhelmingly positive response. All

Dementia UK Annual Report 202 34 -2 45 17

respondents described the sessions as ‘very good’ or ‘good’. Almost all respondents told us they got all or most of the information they needed, that their understanding of dementia and knowledge of the next steps to take had increased, and that they would recommend the sessions to others.

For more information and to register for ‘Dementia: what next?’ please visit >) dementiauk.org/dementia-what-next

What families told us

Next steps

Going forward, we will continue to improve ‘Dementia: what next?’ based on feedback gathered through the survey. This will include reducing the length of the presentations to avoid information overload, and being clearer about matters relating to the devolved nations of the UK.

‘Dementia: what next?’ is making a genuine difference to people’s understanding of dementia and ability to cope with the many challenges. By continuing to deliver the sessions, more families affected by dementia will face the future with confidence thanks to the specialist support and knowledge of our Admiral Nurses.

“The session was extremely helpful, incredibly well-planned, informative, sensitive. It was brilliant. It would have been so helpful to me when I first began the journey of living alongside someone with dementia.”

“How you delivered the [session] was appreciated. It was to the point and allowed question time.”

“Thank you… As you know, it’s a distressing and worrying time when someone you love is diagnosed with dementia, and it’s comforting to know that support is out there via your online information and the Admiral Nurses.”

18 Dementia UK Annual Report 2024-25

“[The Helpline Admiral Nurse] was so professional, kind and empathetic. I was feeling at my lowest ebb and she was able to tune into my feelings at the time and hold the space for me. I don’t know how I would have coped had [the Admiral Nurse] not taken my call.”

Helpline caller

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The impact of our Helpline and virtual clinics

Every year, thousands of people are supported by Admiral Nurses on our Helpline and in video and phone appointments. Our latest evaluation shows the incredible difference these services make for families affected by dementia.

In 2023-24*, 34,790 direct contacts were made to our Helpline.

91% of people contacting the Helpline were caring for a family member.

76% were female.

Between March 2023 and April 2024, 3,187 virtual clinic appointments were completed.

The most common reasons for attending a virtual appointment were:

The most common reasons for contacting the Helpline were:

21% of Helpline contacts related to Alzheimer’s disease.

15% concerned vascular dementia.

Of the people who responded to our survey about their contact with the Helpline or virtual clinic:

83% said they received all or most of the help they needed.

1,530 contacts to the Helpline related to young onset dementia.

22% of contacts related to suspected cases of dementia with no formal diagnosis.

86% said that this made them feel much more or a little more positive about their current situation.

85% said it improved their ability to take better care of the person with dementia.

Dementia UK Annual Report 2024-25

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Spotlight Dementia at work

Dementia impacts thousands of employees, employers and customers across the UK. Our flagship Dementia at Work programme is at the forefront of supporting people affected by dementia in the workplace.

The programme is led by a team of Dementia UK Admiral Nurses who provide organisations with support and guidance around all aspects of dementia. Their expertise ensures the best possible experience for employers, employees and their carers, and customers affected by the condition.

Our ‘Dementia at work’ guides

With nearly one million people in the UK living with dementia, including over 70,000 with young onset dementia, it is vital that the thousands of employees who are affected by the condition can access the support they need at work. Employers also need to know their rights and responsibilities around supporting employees and customers.

In 2024-25, we created two guides to supporting people affected by dementia at work – one for employees and their carers, and the other for employers. These provide them with essential knowledge about dementia in the workplace, from understanding rights and responsibilities to managing the impact of symptoms. You can read the guides at

dementiauk.org/dawemployers and dementiauk.org/dawemployees

Alongside the guides, we developed two films sharing the experiences of employees affected by dementia, whether living with the diagnosis themselves or supporting a loved one while working. The films also featured an Admiral

Nurse from our Dementia at Work Team talking about the challenges of dementia in the workplace and our support for employees and employers.

You can watch the films at

dementiauk.org/support-employees

Supporting organisations

A vital part of our Dementia at Work offering is providing organisations with bespoke services such as webinars and interactive masterclasses tailored to their individual business needs; advice on creating dementia-inclusive workplaces; and consultancy around improving the customer experience for people living with dementia.

During 2024-25, as part of Dementia UK’s Fairer Futures partnership with Nationwide Building Society, and its Fairer Futures social impact strategy, we embedded two dedicated Dementia at Work Admiral Nurses in Nationwide for the duration of the partnership. The nurses are providing free virtual clinic appointments to staff affected by dementia, and working alongside Nationwide on a range of projects to improve support for employees and customers living with the condition. These include regular webinars, consultancy to teams on supporting vulnerable people, and a review of the dementiarelated training available to Nationwide’s 18,000 staff. You can read more about Dementia UK’s partnership with Nationwide on page 60.

Dementia UK Annual Report 2024-25

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Feedback on our ‘Dementia at work’ guides and films

“Thank you for sharing the valuable knowledge. It is vital that employers are aware of the signs as it can help create a more supportive environment and ensure people receive the right assistance.”

“Such an important topic. Fantastic that you have a team who can offer advice and support.”

In addition, the Dementia at Work Team worked with 164 individual organisations throughout 2024-25, reaching an audience of around 2,000 people. This included embedding our Dementia at Work offer into the Charity for Civil Servants, Institute of Civil Engineers and Institute of Mechanical Engineers.

We also worked with our Corporate Partnerships and Regional Fundraising Teams to support other organisations that partner with Dementia UK, improving their support for employers and customers affected by dementia.

Feedback on Nationwide Dementia at Work sessions

What’s next?

To continue the growth of our programme, we have extended our team from four Admiral Nurses to six, so we can work with even more organisations. Throughout 2025-26, we will continue raising awareness and providing support to employers and employees. We plan to reach more small and medium enterprises and embed our support offer into more sectors and new corporate partnerships. Through this, we will ensure the best possible experience for everyone affected by dementia in the workplace.

For more information on our Dementia at Work programme and our support for organisations, please visit (>) dementiauk.org/informationand-support/dementia-at-work

22 Dementia UK Annual Report 2024-25

Admiral Nurses: a lifeline across the UK

We want every family affected by dementia to have the specialist support of an Admiral Nurse in their area. We are working hard with organisations such as NHS Trusts and care home groups to develop new services and support the sustainability of existing services, so no one faces dementia alone.

Our objectives for 2024-25

Our achievements

The support of a community Admiral Nurse can be life-changing for families affected by dementia. Across the year, we extended our vital services to new communities, supporting the development of four new primary care services with five Admiral Nurse posts.

We also developed our services in areas with limited or restricted access to Admiral Nurses. This included securing Admiral Nurse posts within four additional London Boroughs and in areas of the Scottish Borders; and directly

delivering Admiral Nurse clinics in areas without their own services, including parts of of Leicestershire and Sussex.

Overall, we supported the recruitment of 47 hosted Admiral Nurses this year – 10 in new services and 37 within existing services, including 30 replacement posts. This brings the total of Admiral Nurses to 476 (as of 30[th] July 2025) so we can offer more families a lifeline when they need it most.

Along with developing new services, we have worked hard with local stakeholders to maintain existing services. This year, we secured the continuation of 20 services, encompassing 48 Admiral Nurse posts. These included two service expansions, where we supported the growth of existing services. In a challenging health and social care climate, this ensures that families across the UK can continue to access the life-changing support they desperately need.

The Transitions of Care model

Hospital admissions are common for people with dementia. Too often, these are avoidable or prolonged, with particular difficulties around the discharge process.

The Transitions of Care model of Admiral Nursing was an area of priority in 2024-25. This focuses on case management for people with

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dementia and their families during a hospital stay and beyond, with Admiral Nurses working together in the hospital and community to provide continuity of care. It aims to reduce the length of hospital stays for people with dementia, manage an appropriate and timely discharge to the right setting, and prevent hospital readmission.

In collaboration with the local integrated care board (ICB) and Livewell Southwest, we secured the continuation of the award-winning Transitions of Care service in Western Devon. The service has reduced hospital admissions and readmissions, reduced the length of stay and improved outcomes for people living with dementia and their families. It is an example of best practice in integrated dementia care and has received high praise and recognition nationally.

We have supported the appointment of two new Transitions of Care Admiral Nurse posts in Sheffield Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust and anticipate that they will further demonstrate the impact and evidence base for continued growth.

Alongside the Transitions of Care model, we continue to support the development of the traditional acute Admiral Nurse model, where nurses support families during a hospital admission, with a further two services and two Admiral Nurse posts secured in 2024-25. We have also developed two Admiral Nurse services and three new posts in care home settings.

500 Admiral Nurses by the end of 2025

The number of Admiral Nurses continues to grow year on year, and we are close to our target of 500 Admiral Nurses by the end of 2025. This is despite several issues impacting the growth in Admiral Nurse posts, such as the challenges across the health and social care landscape and a lack of funding for dementia services.

When developing new services, due diligence, sustainability and service quality remain key. We are committed to working with the right organisations to develop Admiral Nurse services, with sustainable and recurrent funding in place to support new services.

24 Dementia UK Annual Report 2024-25

What we’ll do next: our priorities for 2025-26

Develop new Admiral Nursing models to best support people living with dementia and their families, including introducing the Emergency Department model, embedding Admiral Nurse roles within emergency departments in acute hospitals to help avoid unnecessary hospital admissions for people living with dementia; and continuing to adapt community models of Admiral Nursing.

Showcase successful Admiral Nursing

models – including the Transitions of Care model – to key stakeholders and decision-makers within health and social care to raise awareness of Admiral Nursing and build the case for new services.

Support the continuation of Admiral Nurse services by working with host organisations and local commissioners to secure ongoing funding; extend the reach and impact of successful services; and maintain existing services.

Support the development of Admiral Nurse services in areas where there is limited or restricted access, and work with other teams within Dementia UK to identify other opportunities to reach these communities, for example through our Helpline and virtual clinic appointments.

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Supporting younger people

Our Young Onset Dementia programme exists to make Dementia UK a centre of expertise for young onset dementia and ensures that the needs and experiences of younger people are represented in everything we do.

Our objectives for 2024-25

Our achievements

Throughout the year, we worked hard to raise the profile of young onset dementia and ensure people affected receive the best possible support – from Dementia UK and other health and care services.

The Young Dementia Network, hosted by Dementia UK, is central to our work with and

for younger people. This online influencing community grew from 5,190 members to over 6,200 in 2024-25, including people living with young onset dementia, their family and friends, and professionals working in the health and social care and voluntary sector.

Dementia UK and the Young Dementia Network worked collaboratively to influence improvements in diagnosis and support for people with young onset dementia and their families. This included developing a young onset dementia framework for integrated care boards (ICBs), setting out our recommended pathway for the diagnosis and support of younger people with dementia.

The Network contributed a young onset dementia-focused response to the NHS England consultation on its 10-year plan for improving health and social care, and supported Dementia UK’s overarching response to the consultation. We also made a submission to the Department for Health and Social Care’s Dementia Programme Board, ensuring one consistent message – that younger people with dementia must be represented in health and care systems at every level.

We have begun developing the Young Dementia Network strategy for 2025-28, with the involvement of younger people with dementia, family members, professionals and researchers. This will establish our objectives to ensure we continue our vital influencing role around young onset dementia.

26 Dementia UK Annual Report 2024-25

Developing professionals’ knowledge

Across the year, we shared our young onset dementia expertise with other health and social care professionals. This included through Young Dementia Network webinars, a webinar at Dementia UK’s annual Summer School for people working in the dementia field, and embedding young onset dementia across the Admiral Nurse Academy’s learning offer for nurses (see page 30).

We were excited to announce the Erica Weldhen Scholarship, funded by a generous donation from a supporter whose wife lived with young onset dementia. In 2025-26, this will fund at least two Admiral Nurses to work on projects aimed at improving care for families living with young onset dementia.

We also contributed to research projects to develop evidence-based knowledge around young onset dementia. These included DYNAMIC – a project on social care for people affected by young onset dementia – and Working with Dementia Network Plus, which aims to shift the understanding of working while living with dementia.

Our young onset dementia resources

People affected by young onset dementia often struggle to find age-appropriate information and support. During 2024-25, we developed and refreshed our young onset dementia resources and ensured young onset dementia is represented in all of Dementia UK’s information leaflets and webpages.

To help people with young onset dementia feel less alone, we shared the experiences of others affected by the condition. These included episodes of our new podcast (see page 46), storyteller films and personal stories on our website. We also harnessed topical moments to raise the profile of our support services, for instance through our media activity around an EastEnders storyline focusing on young onset dementia.

We promoted access to our Helpline and virtual clinic appointments for people with young onset dementia, and expanded our ‘Find support’ search tool, which now lists over 170 groups and services for younger people across the UK. All of this helps to ensure that younger people with dementia know we are here for them – whenever they need us.

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What we’ll do next: our priorities for 2025-26

Work collaboratively as Dementia UK

and the Young Dementia Network to improve the lives of people with young onset dementia and their families through influencing and profile-raising activities, including our young onset dementia pathway framework for ICBs.

Increase the understanding and knowledge

of health and social care professionals , including Admiral Nurses, who support people with young onset dementia and their families.

Support the Young Onset Dementia Consultant Admiral Nurse service as it further develops.

Increase the availability and accessibility of specialist information and support for people with young onset dementia and their families, including using topical opportunities as a hook to share personal stories and promote our information, advice and support services.

Dementia UK Annual Report 2024-25

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Spotlight The Young Dementia Network’s ‘Share your experiences’ project

Younger people living with dementia face different challenges from older people – challenges that are often poorly understood.

For this reason, the Young Dementia Network launched its ‘Share your experiences’ campaign in 2024, asking people affected by young onset dementia to share the realities of living with the condition.

The project aimed to highlight the often-devastating impact of dementia in mid-life, including how it affects relationships, work and finances. The intention was to raise awareness of young onset dementia amongst two priority audiences – GPs and the general public – and drive improvements in the diagnosis experience for people under the age of 65.

Via email, social media and the monthly newsletter, the Young Dementia Network invited its members to share their responses to three key questions:

The campaign received over 200 responses – 32% from people living with dementia, and 68% from family and friends – providing vital

insight into the unique challenges of dementia in mid-life.

Question 1: has young onset dementia taken anything from your life?

Many of the responses mentioned the loss of the person with dementia as they once were. People talked about changes to their abilities, occupations, social interaction and relationships, and how these changes altered how they felt about themselves. They explained that their hopes and expectations for the future had changed or been taken away, and that they felt a loss of independence, freedom and stability.

Question 2: has receiving a diagnosis brought any comfort or benefits?

There were mixed responses to this question, which seemed to depend on how much support the person was receiving. Some said the diagnosis had brought them some comfort, that it was a relief to have an explanation for their symptoms, and that it allowed them to access support, move forward and plan ahead. But many people found no comfort in the diagnosis and talked about a lack of support.

Dementia UK Annual Report 2024-25

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Question 3: which symptoms most significantly affect your daily life?

While memory and other cognitive symptoms were mentioned in people’s responses, these a i 4 i) . ) ers r 3 symptoms are often less pronounced in ‘ yy younger people with dementia than in older people, particularly in the early stages. More frequently, respondents talked about other symptoms that are more common in young onset and rarer forms of dementia – including communication difficulties, changes in mood and behaviour, physical symptoms and difficulty with everyday tasks. People explained that it was not just the symptoms of dementia that impacted Responses to the ‘Share your their lives, but the lack of awareness and experiences’ campaign understanding, particularly because of the invisibility of symptoms and the assumption “I look at things differently that dementia occurs only in later life. now. I found out who my real Since the campaign ended, the Young friends are and have made Dementia Network has used people’s many more since.” responses to create a summary of the most common themes and topics. A series of quotes Person living with young onset dementia – both positive and negative – were shared on social media to raise awareness of the reality of “The person I married isn’t young onset dementia. The Network has also there anymore, the man I developed three animations based on people’s live with now has a different answers to each of the questions. You can personality. Conversation is watch these and read the summary document at youngdementianetwork.org/sharegone. Empathy is gone. The your-experiences2024 sense of humour is gone.” The Young Dementia Network is now Family member working on a second phase of the ‘Share your experiences’ campaign focusing on activism, “[The diagnosis] has left me as a tribute to the late Wendy Mitchell: a more isolated. I don’t think many passionate dementia advocate and activist, people realise or understand Network member and Dementia UK supporter. that dementia can, and does, This will shine a light on people who, inspired affect people in their 50s and by the dementia activism of others, have done something themselves to make a difference to sometimes younger. As such, I people affected by young onset dementia. think society is less tolerant of the struggles we face.” Person living with young onset dementia -

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Developing our Admiral Nurses

Dementia UK’s Admiral Nurse Academy supports every Admiral Nurse to develop and maintain their specialist skills, enabling them to provide people living with dementia and their families with the best possible advice and support.

Our objectives for 2024-25

Our achievements

Dementia UK’s Admiral Nurse Academy is committed to developing and supporting Admiral Nurses so they can offer families the best possible support.

With over 470 Admiral Nurses across the UK, online learning and development is a key part of our Academy offer. In 2024-25, we focused on enhancing our learning management system to ensure it best meets Admiral Nurses’ needs.

We have recruited to a new post of Virtual Learning Environment Officer and invested in new tools for creating online courses. We are streamlining our current content and developing processes to support the platform’s maintenance, making it more engaging and accessible.

Evaluating our Academy offer

Evaluation is an important part of our work, ensuring we provide Admiral Nurses with the right level of support. In 2024-25, we piloted our evaluation plan on:

Our evaluation pilots have provided the whole team with best practice options for evaluating our ongoing activity and helped us make improvements to our ways of working, ensuring the Admiral Nurse Academy provides nurses and other health and social care professionals with the best possible learning and development support.

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Clinical supervision and support

Clinical supervision is a vital part of our Academy offer to ensure Admiral Nurses receive the support they need in their demanding role. Our model of clinical supervision, known as Practice Action Learning Sets (PALS) – where groups of nurses come together virtually to reflect on and share their clinical work – now has 55 groups and 29 facilitators, providing nurses with peer support and supporting best practice.

We have increased our team to enable us to pursue further development opportunities for facilitators and ensure the quality and consistency of our supervision. Our steering group is leading on the ongoing work to develop more senior nurses as facilitators; this includes a new focus on Helpline and clinic services Admiral Nurses, as well as part-time staff.

Developing other professionals

Passing our expertise in dementia care to other professionals working in the field helps ensure that families receive the support they need across health and social care services.

We held another successful online Summer School, which is open to all health and social care professionals working in the dementia field, including students and volunteers. We welcomed 1,607 attendees, with feedback indicating that the topics and information provided were relevant to practice.

In 2024-25, we agreed a plan of action to release free and subscription learning to external health and care professionals, with nurses being our priority audience. Our working group is now developing ways forward, including securing a platform for learning modules and webinars. These learning opportunities will upskill nurses in the fundamentals of dementia care and support

their specialist development. The platform will also be a space to grow a community of registered members.

Valuing lived experience

Lived experience is fundamental to ensuring that we deliver the best possible support for families affected by dementia. Our Lived Experience Advisory Panel (LEAP) – a group of people living with dementia, their families and carers – plays a crucial role in supporting, informing and influencing our charity’s work.

LEAP’s objectives are:

Throughout the year, LEAP has supported many aspects of our work, including helping us develop our General Election manifesto (see page 42), advising on the development of new resources, and sharing members’ lived experience at Summer School.

We also seek the valuable insight of our Lived Experience Advisory Network (LEAN) – a nationwide network of over 200 people living with dementia and carers – to ensure our work is guided by a breadth of experiences.

32 Dementia UK Annual Report 2024-25

Dementia UK’s Admiral Nurse Academy Team

What we’ll do next: our priorities for 2025-26

Pilot and launch our Admiral Nurse Practice Standards which will align with the Nursing and Midwifery Council Specialist and Advanced Nurse Practice Standards. We are aiming for a full launch and accompanying learning offer in April 2026.

Trial a new scholarship opportunity through the Admiral Nurse Academy to enable nurses to deliver a practice development project or initiative specifically focused on young onset dementia, building their knowledge, skills and service.

opportunity to learn more about dementia, our charity and Admiral Nursing. Our first two nurses will join us on placement in September 2025.

Further evaluate and modify the new Admiral Nurse Development Pathway , making adaptations as required to best support new nurses.

Launch a new Leadership Pathway with a foundation course available to all Admiral Nurses in 2025 and an advanced course to follow in 2026.

Provide student nurse placements within the Admiral Nurse Academy, working closely with a university to give nursing students the

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Evidencing our impact

Our Insights and Evaluation Team provides the data that underpins so much of our work and demonstrates the incredible difference Admiral Nurses make.

Our objectives for 2024-25

Our achievements

Throughout 2024-25, we provided 40 hosted Admiral Nurse services and 15 Dementia UK services with monitoring and evaluation advice, guidance and support. This included annual reports for the Helpline and virtual clinics (2023-24), and for our Consultant Admiral Nurse services for Frailty and Physical Health, Young Onset Dementia, Lewy Body Dementia and Sport and Dementia.

We supported colleagues with devising surveys, including advising on question wording and analysis. We provided data for requests received from across the organisation, including data reports to support our Philanthropy and Partnerships Team with evidencing the impact of projects supported by our corporate partners; and data for stewardship emails for the Individual Giving Team.

We provided colleagues in the Admiral Nurse Academy with evaluation guidance and support on key areas of their work including the annual Summer School and Admiral Nurse Forum. We also supported the 2025-30 Dementia UK strategy consultation with the development of the consultation survey, advice on focus group questions, and analysis and reporting of survey data. This insight has informed the strategy to ensure the best ongoing support for families facing dementia.

The annual Admiral Nurse census is an important opportunity to gather information about the breadth and depth of the Admiral Nurse role. In 2024-25, we shared the results of our 2023 census summary report with Admiral Nurses and hosts to evidence the impact of Admiral Nursing. This included a webinar demonstrating what our workforce looks like and the activities carried out to support families living with dementia and other professionals.

34 Dementia UK Annual Report 2024-25

Collecting feedback

Throughout the year, we collected feedback from families accessing our Admiral Nurse services. We received around 1,500 responses to feedback surveys for our Helpline and virtual clinic appointments and developed new surveys to support Nationwide dementia clinics and Dementia at Work clinics.

We are piloting a carer feedback survey for people accessing Admiral Nurse services in acute settings, with five services currently using this survey. We have also reviewed and updated our general carer and professional feedback surveys.

The feedback we receive demonstrates the difference Admiral Nursing makes to families and professionals and builds the case for growing hosted and Dementia UK services so we can support more people when they need it most.

Growing our nurses’ skills

To support Admiral Nurses with their own evaluation and monitoring, we developed a ‘Case study’ session, which we delivered as part of the Admiral Nurse Academy masterclass series. We also developed

a ‘Collecting demographic information for Admiral Nurses’ session, attended by nurses from our Helpline, virtual clinics and Nationwide dementia clinics.

We included a monthly evaluation topic in the Admiral Nurse bulletin on subjects including ‘What is monitoring and evaluation?’, ‘Creating a monitoring and evaluation plan’, and ‘Collecting carer feedback’. These will help nurses grow their understanding of and confidence in evaluation and monitoring.

Exploring new tools

An important part of our work is developing tools and methods for gathering, storing, analysing and sharing information and evidence. We have reviewed our data collection spreadsheets to make them more accessible for Admiral Nurses. These are currently being used by 25 hosted services to record activity and demographic data that demonstrates their impact on families facing dementia.

Requests to support the Nationwide partnership and Dementia UK’s strategy consultation took precedence over fully exploring new tools and methods for managing information and evidence, but we will continue this work in the next year.

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What we’ll do next: our priorities for 2025-26

Ensure that our insights and evaluation work effectively supports Dementia UK’s strategy and demonstrates the role and impact of Admiral Nurses. We will provide monitoring and evaluation advice, guidance and support; analyse and report evidence relating to Admiral Nurse services; and develop ideas and plans to support the charity’s strategy for 2025-30.

Continue to support the Nationwide

partnership with monitoring and evaluation, including feedback surveys and activity data for branch clinics.

opportunities. We will also review our monitoring and evaluation handbook and online learning resources.

Continue to develop tools and methods for gathering, storing, analysing and sharing information and evidence, and test new systems to make data more accessible to colleagues across the organisation.

Collect feedback from families and

professionals who access or have contact with Dementia UK and hosted Admiral Nurse services, including reviewing our bespoke carer and professional feedback surveys.

Develop ways to build the evaluation capability of Admiral Nurses , working with the Admiral Nurse Academy to deliver webinars, masterclasses and other learning

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The value of research

By building the evidence base for Admiral Nursing and contributing to dementia care research nationally and internationally, our Research and Publications Team plays a vital role in improving support for families facing dementia.

Our objectives for 2024-25

Our achievements

At Dementia UK, our research is focused on building the evidence base for Admiral Nursing in order to grow services throughout the UK and enable us to support more families. Our research strategy sets out three research priorities:

In 2024-25, we completed 11 ‘bitesize’ research reviews on topics including implementing post-diagnostic support and improving end of life care. These are hosted on our online learning platform for Admiral Nurses to inform them about recent research and its implications for their practice.

Developing Admiral Nurses’ skills and confidence in research and writing for publication is central to addressing our priorities. This year, we collaborated with Join Dementia Research to create a course on ‘Confident conversations about research’. Our pilot showed a statistically significant improvement in nurses’ confidence to talk about research and opportunities for people affected by dementia to participate.

Throughout the year, we supported Consultant Admiral Nurses to become involved in research projects relating to their areas of specialty and gain honorary contracts with universities to increase their links with researchers and academia. We also supported the introduction of a ‘journal club’ to enable them to appraise research literature.

We presented at the Admiral Nurse Forum on ‘Transitions in digital technology use for people living with dementia’ and worked with the Admiral Nurse Academy to deliver a masterclass on decision-making at the end of life. These activities helped nurses develop new knowledge that they can translate into practice to better support families facing dementia.

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We continue to co-facilitate the national Hospice UK/Dementia UK Dementia and Palliative and End of Life Care Community of Practice, now in its 10[th] year.

Our publications

Throughout the year, our research and articles appeared in 32 publications, with nine more accepted for publication or in press. Fourteen conference posters (visual presentations of our research findings) and oral presentations (formal talks to an audience) were also delivered or accepted.

Our book, ‘Living with dementia – what you really want to know’, is one of the top 20 books on the Dementia Reading Well list, with copies available in every public library. Due to demand, the book will be translated into Welsh in the coming year.

We helped several Admiral Nurses publish their work in peer-reviewed journals during 2024-25 and supported a nurse to take a lead editorial role on ‘Dementia Essentials’: a textbook introducing the principles of good dementia care to nursing, health and social care students.

The experiences of people living with dementia and their carers are fundamental to our research. To help people feel confident about participating, we worked with LEAP to develop a guide to research involvement for people affected by dementia: please visit

dementiauk.org/about-our-research

Our research webinar series

While the anticipated launch of our national research webinar series was delayed, planning is well underway for the programme, with three to four webinars proposed for each calendar year. The webinars will embrace developments, research and projects in Dementia UK to reinforce our position as a dynamic and inquisitive charity.

The webinars will also showcase research projects such as our national mapping work, which is progressing well. The first phase of the mapping project is to analyse national data on factors that may increase a person’s risk of additional complex challenges related to dementia, for example health inequalities and poverty. We are using this data to develop ‘heat maps’ showing areas of greatest need, which will help us identify where to prioritise when developing new Admiral Nursing services.

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Members of Dementia UK’s Research and Publications Team

What we’ll do next: our priorities for 2025-26

Map inequalities in dementia and the availability of Admiral Nursing to focus our efforts on developing new services in the areas of greatest need.

Develop a core outcomes set for Admiral Nurses to measure their impact in all services across the UK and help us demonstrate the value of Admiral Nursing more easily and effectively.

Develop a leaflet on autism and dementia , based on the growing evidence that dementia is more common in autistic people.

Commence work on a health economic

analysis of Admiral Nursing, assessing its costs and benefits compared to other health interventions, to encourage potential host organisations to consider the benefits of developing a local service.

Update and add new research-mindedness modules to our online learning platform to encourage more Admiral Nurses to undertake and publish their own research.

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Campaigning for change

Our Policy, Campaigns and Public Affairs Team is a positive force for change, calling for local and national improvements in dementia care so no one is left to struggle alone.

Our objectives for 2024-25

Our achievements

The General Election and engaging with the new Government dominated our campaigning activity in 2024-25. Through our ‘Put dementia on the agenda’ campaign, we called on party leaders and candidates to transform dementia care if elected. You can read more about this on page 42.

Soon after the General Election, working with thousands of passionate supporters, we reached out to all MPs about why dementia needs to be on the Government’s agenda. We also created an information pack to show MPs how Dementia UK can work with them to support people affected by the condition, locally and nationally.

During the first six months of the new Parliament, we met with a quarter of all MPs to speak to them about the need to improve dementia care and the impact of Admiral Nurses. This included attending the main UK political party conferences, where we met over 150 MPs. As a result, over the last year, Dementia UK’s policy recommendations have been mentioned in Parliament more than ever before.

All these activities will help drive change to address the many issues in health and social care affecting people with dementia, so they and their families receive the support they need.

Dementia UK campaigners taking our message to Parliament

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Our young onset dementia framework

As part of our commitment to improving dementia care for communities that

often struggle to access support, we have collaborated with the Young Dementia Network to develop a comprehensive young onset dementia framework for integrated care boards (ICBs). The framework aims to help ICBs in England address the unique needs of people with young onset dementia, with clear guidance on implementation and best practice.

We also worked with MPs to raise the profile of young onset dementia in Parliament and developed a powerful film featuring Gail – whose story you can read on page 10 – talking about the challenges she has faced trying to access dementia support. You can watch this at t> dementiauk.org/gails-story

‘Fix the funding’: our NHS continuing healthcare campaign

NHS continuing healthcare funding is a lifeline for many families facing dementia, helping cover the costs of care, but too many people are struggling to access it due to a broken system that fails to recognise their needs.

In 2024-25 we continued our ‘Fix the funding’ campaign, calling for improvements to the NHS continuing healthcare process for families affected by dementia. This was a key call in our General Election campaign. As part of the campaign, we developed a hard-hitting film with Mahersh talking about the challenges his family faced in accessing continuing healthcare funding for his mother. You can watch this at

Over the year, we fed into other national and local policy consultations, highlighting the experiences of people affected by dementia and the Admiral Nurses who support them. These included National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) appraisals of emerging drug treatments; a submission to the Covid inquiry on social care; and the Scottish Government’s Palliative Care Strategy.

Shaping the future of NHS England

In autumn 2024, the Government launched its biggest ever consultation about the NHS in England to help shape a new 10-year plan to improve healthcare. This provided a huge opportunity to ensure that the needs of people affected by dementia were reflected in the plan.

An incredible 4,700 supporters completed a survey about NHS dementia care to inform our response to the Government. Nearly three quarters told us that the NHS is failing to meet the needs of families affected by dementia. Our Chief Admiral Nurse and CEO Dr Hilda

Hayo was also involved in the Department of Health and Social Care’s vision working groups for the 10-year plan – one of the few charity representatives to be included.

The insight from our supporters, along with research carried out with Admiral Nurses, helped shape Dementia UK’s organisational response to the Government – calling for more specialist dementia nursing, improved support for carers, and urgent action to remove barriers to care for communities that find it especially difficult to access support.

dementiauk.org/chc-mahersh

We also met regularly with civil servants from the Department of Health and Social Care, and collaborated with charities across the sector as part of the NHS Continuing Healthcare Alliance to show how the process must be improved for families affected by dementia.

Dementia UK supporters Will and Ronnie addressing MPs

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The plan was published in July 2025, and we are encouraged that it includes a number of commitments that, if effected, would improve care and support for families affected by dementia. We will continue working alongside decision-makers to shape the delivery of the plan and make sure it addresses the complexities of living with dementia.

Dementia UK is also represented in the Commission on Palliative and End-of-Life Care, giving us a voice at the heart of Government.

Making families’ voices heard

All our campaigns are underpinned by the experiences of people affected by dementia. In 2024-25, over 19,000 amazing Dementia UK supporters took campaigning action across the UK. We supported several dedicated campaigners to meet with their MPs in person to discuss the importance of transforming dementia care.

LEAP members took an active role in helping shape our General Election campaign,

Rosie Brooks, Dementia UK supporter who cared for her mum, at our Downing Street event

including providing insight into our manifesto summary and open letter to party leaders.

We also developed a campaigner engagement strategy that seeks to strengthen our campaigner community over the next three years. This will help us in our mission to transform dementia care in the UK so that all families can access specialist support.

What we’ll do next: our priorities for 2025-26

Push to ensure that specialist dementia care is at the heart of the changes to the way health and care are delivered in England, including through influencing the NHS 10-year health plan and calling for more Admiral Nursing in acute care settings and neighbourhood health teams.

Widen our influence in the devolved

nations by campaigning for improvements in dementia care throughout the UK, expanding our team into Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland and engaging with the respective parliaments and governments.

Push for changes to NHS continuing healthcare funding through our ‘Fix the

funding’ campaign, working with colleagues across the sector to look at systemic improvements needed to the continuing healthcare process.

Campaign to reduce health inequalities in dementia care, including through improving access for people living with young onset dementia and researching other health inequalities to develop robust policy recommendations for change.

Drive improvements in end of life care for people with dementia, including through representation in the Royal Commission for End of Life Care.

Dementia UK Annual Report 2024-25

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Spotlight ‘Put dementia on the agenda’: our General Election campaign

The General Election gave us the opportunity to highlight the need for urgent improvements in dementia care. Our Policy, Campaigns and Public Affairs Team called on all candidates to make it a priority.

In May 2024, Dementia UK launched ‘Put dementia on the agenda’, our General Election campaign. We wanted candidates and newly elected MPs from all political parties to understand the urgent need to fix dementia care, and to commit to taking bold action for the growing number of families affected by the condition.

When the General Election was called sooner than expected, we sprang into action to launch our campaign. At the heart of this was our manifesto, developed in collaboration with Admiral Nurses and people affected by dementia. It outlined four clear steps that the UK Government must take to lead the way in transforming dementia care:

  1. Fix the NHS continuing healthcare funding process to make care funding fairer for people with dementia.

  2. Deliver expert and personalised support after a dementia diagnosis so that no one faces dementia alone.

  3. Improve diagnosis rates and age-appropriate support for people affected by young onset dementia.

  4. Increase access to specialist dementia nursing in hospitals.

We contacted all candidates directly to share our manifesto and asked them to meet with us if elected. We also produced an open letter, in collaboration with LEAP, which called on party leaders to commit to fixing dementia care if elected.

Rallying our supporters

We rallied our passionate supporters to get behind our campaign, sharing updates and ways to get involved. We developed an easy-to-use tool for supporters to email General Election candidates about the importance of taking action on dementia care, and created a window poster which suggested questions to ask local candidates who were canvassing in constituencies.

Many people affected by dementia joined the campaign, and shared powerful stories about the challenges of accessing care and the importance of improving it for other families.

An incredible 13,000 Dementia UK supporters signed our open letter to party leaders, and over 2,000 people contacted their local candidates urging them to transform dementia care. We also secured local and national media coverage about our campaign.

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Working together for change

Alongside our ‘Put dementia on the agenda’ campaign, we proudly partnered with Alzheimer’s Research UK, Alzheimer’s Society, Alzheimer Scotland and the UK Dementia Research Institute to create a joint manifesto setting out the steps we need the UK Government to take to transform the lives of people affected by dementia. Our recommendations for change focused on prevention, diagnosis, support, care and research.

We shared our joint manifesto with our supporters via email and on social media, where it achieved the highest engagement rates across all our General Election activity, highlighting how much Dementia UK supporters care about us collaborating with other charities. We also shared it directly with General Election candidates.

“Throughout the time I was a carer there were so many barriers to us getting support. It took a huge toll on my mental health. I truly believe that the system has to change for other families so they don’t experience what I did with my parents.”

Chris, campaign supporter whose parents both lived with dementia

Our work continues

Thanks to the efforts of Dementia UK staff and supporters, 400 General Election candidates agreed to meet with us if elected. Since the election in July 2024, we have met with over 160 MPs and seen an increase in the number of MPs asking the UK Government questions about our recommendations for change.

While we cannot fix dementia care overnight, we are making great progress to push it up the political agenda – and we will continue to press for urgent improvements so people affected by dementia can access the support they desperately need.

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Spreading the word

The work of our Marketing and Communications Team raises awareness of Dementia UK and our Admiral Nurse services, ensuring people affected by dementia know we are here when they need us.

Our objectives for 2024-25

Our achievements

The stories of people affected by dementia are a powerful force for raising awareness of our life-changing work. In 2024-25, we put their voices at the heart of our communications. This included creating videos of storytellers talking openly about their experiences,

which we shared for key moments including International Nurses Day, World Alzheimer’s Month and Black History Month.

Our storytellers were also central to the fourth phase of our awareness campaign, ‘We live with dementia’. This signposted people to our ‘Living with dementia’ guide, which, for the first time, we also distributed through GP surgeries. The campaign ran across social media, TV, radio and out-of-home advertising; as a result, many more families know about the support we provide.

Reaching people digitally

Throughout the year we sent regular email communications to our supporters, sharing dementia information and advice, raising awareness of our support services, and encouraging them to fundraise, donate and campaign. We also used email to connect with health and social care professionals, encouraging them to direct families towards Dementia UK’s support.

Social media is key to raising awareness of our charity. Throughout the year, we shared a huge range of content, including stories, videos, tips, campaigns and Q&As. We also tailored content and ran paid campaigns targeted at younger people on TikTok to reach its younger demographic.

We continued to develop our suite of information resources, publishing new leaflets and webpages and reviewing our existing resources to ensure all our information is

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current and reliable. We invested in SEO to help people affected by dementia find our information more easily, resulting in increased in traffic to our website.

We also worked with Admiral Nurses to create a series of online sessions, ‘Dementia: what next?’, designed to inform people about what to expect after a diagnosis. You can read more about the sessions on page 16.

Sharing news and information

Our PR activity is a crucial part of raising our profile and signposting people to our services. Throughout the year, the Media and PR Team secured significantly more press coverage than in 2023-24. We drove this through corporate partnership announcements, by working closely with the BBC and ITV to support dementia storylines in EastEnders and Coronation Street, and through themed media plans around barriers to dementia care and transitions of care.

The team provided media training for Admiral Nurses to grow our roster of spokespeople, and engaged new Celebrity Ambassadors and social media influencers to support our activity. All of this ensures we are at the front of people’s minds when they need information and support around dementia.

Social media in numbers

TikTok: up 51.16% LinkedIn: up 23.45% Instagram: up 18.05% Facebook: up 14.71% X: down 1.89% *

What we’ll do next: our priorities for 2025-26

Design, deliver and roll out a new brand strategy .

Develop a digital transformation

strategy to expand the reach of our Admiral Nurses, ensuring more people can access their expert advice and support.

Enhance the accessibility of our information, advice and support services, including through SEO, to ensure that families affected by dementia and professionals can easily access and benefit from our resources.

Use current affairs, celebrity diagnoses and TV storylines as hooks to build our content and raise awareness of Dementia UK and Admiral Nurses, ensuring we are responsive to these emerging moments across our channels.

Dementia UK Annual Report 2024-25

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Spotlight ‘My life with dementia’: Dementia UK’s podcast

No one better understands the challenges of dementia than the people who are living with it. Our new podcast shines a light on their stories and raises awareness of the life-changing support of our Admiral Nurses.

Podcasts have surged in popularity in recent years, providing a conversational platform for sharing stories, allowing listeners to connect deeply with the experiences of others. The Marketing and Communications Team saw the potential of a Dementia UK podcast to reach a huge audience, many of whom may be unaware of our charity. We also recognised that our listeners would be able to download and listen to the podcasts at any time, providing a flexibility that is essential when caring for someone with dementia, or living with the condition yourself.

Our podcast storytellers

Production of our first podcast series, ‘My life with dementia’, began in April 2024. It takes listeners on a personal journey through the world of dementia, told by people who have experienced it themselves.

Our storytellers included Andy, who was diagnosed with dementia at 52; Ricky, who shared his heartfelt experiences of grief and guilt while caring for his grandmother; and Aqib and Shahbanu, who stressed the importance of creating moments of connection as carers for their mother. Each episode also included practical tips from two of Dementia UK’s Admiral Nurses.

Actor Jim Broadbent, who is a Celebrity Ambassador for Dementia UK, kindly agreed to present the podcast – introducing our storytellers, providing context on their experiences and signposting our services at the end of each episode. We are very grateful for his support.

We worked in collaboration with a freelance producer to create ‘My life with dementia’. All the storytellers featured in the podcast had been supported by Dementia UK and our Admiral Nurses. They had incredibly compelling stories to tell. It was also important for us to hear from people living with dementia themselves, not just carers, family and friends.

Andy, who lives with young onset dementia, featured in our podcast

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Feedback from ‘My life with dementia’ season one

Aqib and Shahbanu care for their mother and shared their story in our podcast

‘My life with dementia’ launched in September 2024 to coincide with World Alzheimer’s Day, with a series of six episodes. The response was phenomenal, with over 21,000 downloads in just one month; this has since risen to over 41,000. The podcast has featured in prominent publications like Radio Times, The Telegraph, The Times and The Sunday Times. It also reached number 17 in the top health and fitness podcasts on Spotify and was shortlisted for a CharityComms 2024 Inspiring Communicator Award.

What’s next?

Following the success of season one, a second series of ‘My life with dementia’ launched in May 2025, featuring six new storytellers, each with their own unique story, and a new presenter – journalist, podcaster and Dementia UK Celebrity Ambassador Marianne Jones.

“Thank you for everything you do with such dignity, understanding and sensitivity. I love the sum-ups your Admiral Nurses do at the end, some of which I’m listening to more than once as they are so useful.”

“It’s comforting to know all the things I feel are normal.”

“Currently bingeing on this fantastic new podcast that sensitively, without sensation, explores the challenges families and people living with dementia face.”

“As a military doctor, I’ve encountered many challenging health conditions, but the stories of individuals living with dementia truly resonate with me. It’s inspiring to see how much impact Admiral Nurses and organisations like Dementia UK are making in the lives of those affected.”

The new season builds on the success of series one, reaching new listeners so more people hear about the realities of living with dementia, find comfort in listening to the stories of those in similar situations, and learn how we can support them if they need us.

‘My life with dementia’ is available to listen to on all podcast platforms and our website: please visit 1> dementiauk.org/podcast

Dementia UK Annual Report 2024-25

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Elliott’s story

I was 12 years old when Dad first showed signs of dementia. There were times when I would be waiting at school because he’d forgotten to pick me up. The front door would be left open when he went out. And packing his bag for work the next day began to take hours, not minutes.

Dad wasn’t even 60 when he was diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease – the most common form of dementia. I was trying to navigate the transition between primary and secondary school: a confusing time for anyone, let alone when you throw a parent’s dementia into the mix. I wanted to form new friendships and invite people over. But I didn’t know if this would confuse Dad or if he would be in a strange mood that day.

I didn’t speak to any of my friends about what was going on – partly because I didn’t really know how to talk about it, but also because I just wanted to be treated normally. I didn’t want sympathy.

Music was Dad’s great passion in life. He learnt to sing and play a variety of instruments from a very young age. He travelled around the world conducting choirs – in these moments, he was truly in his element.

us to be consumed with the stress of the situation, so she bore the weight of it.

“Our Admiral Nurse changed our lives”

As a family, we didn’t know too much about dementia. We didn’t really speak about it. But then Jody – our Admiral Nurse – came into our lives and changed all of that.

Jody explained things in plain terms, organised carers, communicated with our school, and helped with financial questions. Just as important was her emotional support. She was a lifesaver for Mum. With Jody’s help, we were even able to go on a dementia-friendly holiday with Dad. I’ll always cherish those memories of our last family trip together.

Dad also taught private music lessons, but as his dementia got worse, his pupils began to drop off. He couldn’t remember what they had done in their previous lessons. Sometimes he’d forget altogether and not turn up.

This added a layer of financial pressure to the situation. At one point, my mum was juggling three jobs while caring for Dad and parenting me and my sister. Despite this load, she never let on that it was something to worry about. She didn’t want

Elliott’s mum Janet (right) with Admiral Nurse Jody

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When Dad went into care it was the hardest time for me. I didn’t want him to leave home. But it was apparent that having carers at home wasn’t enough. Jody instigated the conversation about moving Dad into full-time care and helped us work through the decision, which was difficult beyond words.

“Jody was there in the darkest moments”

I honestly believe music kept Dad going in the later stages of his dementia. Even when he couldn’t speak, he could sometimes sit down at the piano and play an amazing classical piece. When he was in hospital in his final weeks, we brought him an MP3 player so we

could play music for him. Even though his eyes were closed and he couldn’t communicate, you could see him light up and try to sing.

Dad passed away in spring 2019. The funeral was a difficult day for all of us, but Jody was there, which meant so much. She had been with us through our darkest days, and still keeps in contact with Mum.

We simply couldn’t have got through this most difficult of periods without Jody. I honestly can’t see how any family would be able to navigate dementia without an Admiral Nurse.

You can watch Elliott’s story at (>) dementiauk.org/elliotts-story

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Individual giving: changing lives with every donation

Our work is only possible because of the amazing supporters who make single or regular donations, donate in memory and leave gifts in their Wills. Our Individual Giving, In Memory and Supporter Experience Team inspires current and new supporters to donate to our life-changing work.

Our objectives for 2024-25

Our achievements

Our life-changing work depends on our generous supporters. We are truly grateful to everyone who donates regularly, ensuring we can maintain and grow our support services for families across the UK. In 2024-25, we increased the number of regular givers by 72%. This included through a new face-to-face fundraising programme (see page 52), two annual appeals, and our Weekly Lottery.

both generates funds and raises awareness of our invaluable work.

We also worked with the Policy, Campaigns and Public Affairs Team to ask supporters to raise their hand for change and email their MP about the need to improve dementia care, with many going on to support Dementia UK in other ways.

Gifts in Wills

Gifts in Wills ensure we can be there for families far into the future. We are sincerely grateful to everyone who supports us in this generous way. To encourage people to consider making a gift in their Will, we:

These activities and others led to a 34% increase in people leaving a gift in their Will since last year, helping us support families in generations to come.

Throughout the year, we ran a campaign on social media, giving new supporters the opportunity to request a free gift and be contacted about setting up a donation. This

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Showing our gratitude

To express our gratitude to our supporters, we held our first ThankAthon week, contacting some of our most loyal donors to personally explain the difference they make – read more on page 56.

We also sent our magazine, ‘Closer to you’ to our supporters, featuring stories of the people who benefit from their generosity; and mailings to thank them for their loyalty and show the impact of their donations.

Many of our supporters donate in memory of someone special. We gave them opportunities to remember their loved ones by posting tributes on our virtual Memory Walls. We also held an online remembrance event for supporters to come together to celebrate the life of a loved one. Many attendees told us how much they appreciated this collective act of remembrance.

We continue to collect supporters’ feedback through surveys and mystery shopping. The results show that we have maintained their satisfaction and increased their loyalty to Dementia UK. We will use these findings to build an even better experience for our supporters, whose loyalty and generosity mean more families can access our specialist dementia services.

“I wanted to personally thank you for organising the ‘Together to remember’ event. I really appreciated the opportunity to reflect on my mum’s 12-year journey and subsequent death from dementia and share the space with like minded people.”

What we’ll do next: our priorities for 2025-26

Continue to promote gifts in Wills

including through advertising our free Wills services and gifts in Wills guide; supporter events; and promoting this form of giving to people who have supported Dementia UK in other ways.

Grow long-term sustainable income through face-to-face fundraising, the Weekly Lottery and other fundraising activities, for example Christmas and spring appeals and promoting the importance of Gift Aid.

Create an excellent supporter experience to make donors feel valued and help them understand the difference they make.

Online remembrance event attendee

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Spotlight Growing regular giving: our face-to-face fundraising programme

In 2024-25 we embarked on a new fundraising programme, where professional fundraisers meet members of the public in person to tell them about our charity and encourage them to make a regular gift.

Face-to-face fundraising provides the opportunity to diversify and grow long-term, sustainable income that will enable us to develop our support services, now and in the future. It allows us to talk to people about dementia, why our work is so important, and how they can help.

Our fundraisers are equipped to have conversations about the urgent need for improved dementia support. They emphasise the impact of long-term giving on growing the number of specialist dementia nurses, and provide examples of what regular donations could achieve.

Our initial face-to-face fundraising activity ran from June 2024 to February 2025 at over 500 sites across the Swindon and South London areas, including supermarkets, leisure centres and garden centres.

Raising awareness and funds

Our fundraisers work at a Dementia UK stand with various branded materials such as banners, information leaflets, welcome packs and an electronic tablet which they use to complete Direct Debit sign-ups. They aim to greet every member of the public warmly, often speaking to over 200 people a day. This helps to raise awareness of Dementia UK as well as recruiting new supporters.

Our initial face-to-face fundraising activity proved a great success, recruiting more than 4,000 new supporters. In addition, a number of people who were unable to commit to regular giving made single donations in their own time following their conversations.

Just as importantly, we received a wealth of positive feedback about our fundraisers from members of the public, showing the power of this activity to build our reputation and profile.

Following the success of the fundraising campaign, we will continue this method of fundraising in 2025-26 with the aim of signing up more regular supporters, all of whom will help drive our mission of specialist dementia support for every family that needs us.

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“I met a very friendly collector in Waitrose today who explained to me what Dementia UK does. He was very thoughtful, especially when I mentioned there is dementia in my family… I’m emailing to advise you of his help and will be signing up for a regular donation.” New Dementia UK supporter

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Our amazing fundraisers

Thousands of supporters every year raise vital funds for Dementia UK. Our Community Fundraising, Events and Innovation Team supports them throughout their inspiring fundraising journeys.

Our objectives for 2024-25

Our achievements

In 2024-25, our passionate and dedicated challenge events participants came together to raise vital funds for Dementia UK. We focused on our ‘fewer, bigger, better’ strategy, reducing the number of third-party events but increasing our investment in places. We concentrated on making these events bigger in participant numbers and income; and better, to ensure our committed supporters have the best experience of fundraising for families living with dementia.

Throughout the year, thousands of supporters took on a DIY event – a fundraising challenge of their own choice – or a virtual event for Dementia UK. We ran a number of virtual events throughout the year and tested new fundraising challenges aimed at different audiences.

Historically, we have given branded t-shirts to virtual event participants; however, we branched out this year to include incentives tailored to the challenge, including running buffs, beanies and knitting patterns.

To connect with our supporters, we tested new technology including new sign-up and fundraising platforms. The results were positive, and we are now using these technologies in more upcoming virtual events.

Time for a Cuppa, our flagship annual tea party event, proved a great success. Our committed supporters baked and brewed for Dementia UK, together raising £212,253: an increase of 22% on 2024-25. We secured sponsorship from our partner Nationwide for the 2025 fundraiser, helping us reach more supporters and raise even more for families facing dementia.

Our Regional Fundraising Team continues to work hard to build links with local companies and organisations and encourage them to support us. We are also focused on growing and supporting our community of Volunteer Ambassadors, who generously give their time to raise funds and awareness.

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Innovating to succeed

Innovation is crucial to driving our fundraising. Working collaboratively across Dementia UK’s Fundraising Teams, we developed three new propositions in 2024-25:

By developing products like these, we can create new opportunities for new and existing supporters to donate, growing our services so more families can access our life-changing support.

What we’ll do next: our priorities for 2025-26

Continue to create new fundraising propositions , using our innovation process to develop and test new insight-led products.

Diversify our marketing channels , including testing different platforms for recruiting supporters for Time for a Cuppa.

Further grow income across community fundraising , focusing on DIY supporters, regional corporates and organisations.

Establish a strong pipeline for new business across regional companies, working closely with the Corporate Partnerships Team.

Focus on growing our DIY events programme through providing an excellent stewardship journey and supplying additional fundraising materials.

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Spotlight Dementia UK’s ThankAthon

Without our supporters, we simply couldn’t do what we do. They change the lives of families affected by dementia – and showing our immense gratitude is a key part of our supporter experience work.

In February 2025, we piloted a centrally coordinated ThankAthon week to show some our most loyal supporters how grateful we are for their support, rallying staff from across Dementia UK to play their part.

Throughout the week, we personally thanked over 1,000 supporters for their generosity. We sent tailored, handwritten thank you cards, which included a QR code taking supporters to a webpage explaining their incredible impact. A team of staff volunteers, including Admiral Nurses, made phone calls to people who have supported us through events and community fundraising. To extend our gratitude further, staff recorded messages of thanks which we shared on our social media channels.

Building loyalty and trust

Despite not asking for donations, we saw some immediate benefits, including supporters opting into our email communications and updating their Gift Aid status, making their gifts worth 25% more. There was an increase in engagement with our impact webpage during and after the event, and a corresponding increase in volunteer and fundraising rates after visiting the page.

Going forward, we will continue to assess the impact of the ThankAthon on our supporters’ loyalty through a survey. Without them, thousands of families would be left to face dementia alone. We could not be more grateful for their kindness.

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ThankAthon feedback from supporters and staff

“Everyone I called was so pleased to be getting a call. It was lovely, as an Admiral Nurse, to thank people for supporting us so we can support others.” Staff volunteer

“What I did and raised is nothing compared to the support you have given my family.” Supporter who was contacted by phone

“It made my day!”

Supporter who was contacted by phone

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Working in partnership

Our work wouldn’t be possible without the corporate partners, trusts and major donors whose generosity ensures we are there when people need us most.

Our objectives for 2024-25

Our achievements

Our corporate partners play a huge part in ensuring families facing dementia can access the expert, tailored support of an Admiral Nurse, and we sincerely thank every new and existing partner who helped us extend our impact throughout the year.

We are delighted to have formed a transformational partnership with Nationwide Building Society as part of its social impact strategy, Fairer Futures. This is funding 30 Admiral Nurses and aims to support 100,000 people impacted by dementia. You can read more about this transformational partnership on page 60.

Our Charity of the Year partnership with Deutsche Bank raised an incredible £1m to fund our life-changing work. A particular highlight was its annual One Day fundraiser, where UK colleagues were encouraged to donate a day’s salary to Dementia UK, with all donations matched by the bank. Thanks to their incredible generosity, over £520,000 was raised for families facing dementia.

Our longest-standing partnership with Central Co-op reached its conclusion in December 2024, having raised a fantastic £2.8m since 2017. This will have a lasting impact on families facing dementia, including directly in their local communities and through our Helpline.

We are extremely grateful to our other corporate partners who supported us during 2024-25. These include Assura, Everyone Active, Macfarlanes, Morson Group, The Openwork Foundation, Tokio Marine HCC International, Westerleigh, Wolseley UK and Zurich Community Trust. We have also begun an exciting new three-year partnership with F.Hinds. Because of their support, we can be there for more families who would otherwise have nowhere to turn.

Trusts and major donors

Across 2024-25, we were truly grateful to receive generous donations from many trusts, foundations and individual supporters. These valued donations will help us develop specific services, including clinics for communities that struggle to access dementia support. We provide these

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Hilda Hayo, Dementia UK’s Chief Admiral Nurse and CEO, joining a Nationwide Fairer Futures panel

supporters with regular stewardship and engagement, ensuring they hear about the incredible impact of their donations.

We also launched our first giving club for major donors who pledge to support us annually – The 500 Club. In recognition of their commitment, we keep supporters up to date with the difference their donations make, along with invitations to special events. We are collaborating with teams across Dementia UK to develop more opportunities like this for our supporters to work with us.

To show our gratitude to our trusts and major donors and encourage others to support us in this way, we have created a programme of events, such as an event at 11 Downing Street where we met and thanked some of our supporters. We will build on this programme to ensure our donors feel valued and inspired to continue their support for people affected by dementia.

What we’ll do next: our priorities for 2025-26

Continue to develop major gift opportunities that inspire funders to accelerate and transform dementia support.

Build long-lasting relationships with our partners and supporters through providing excellent stewardship.

Continue to deliver successful, strategic and wide-reaching corporate partnerships, providing a platform to help us reach more families and communities who need our support.

Develop and enhance opportunities to engage colleagues and customers in a meaningful and impactful way, such as further embedding our Dementia at Work programme and exploring how we can harness theirnetworks and knowledge.

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Spotlight Our partnership with Nationwide Building Society

In 2024, we announced a transformational partnership with Nationwide. We are working together as part of its new social impact strategy, Fairer Futures, which is tackling four of the biggest issues affecting society today.

Our partnership aims to support 100,000 people through specialist dementia advice and guidance. This includes funding 30 Admiral Nurses to work on our Helpline and run dementia clinics in 200 Nationwide branches across the UK. The clinics provide free appointments to members of the public, regardless of whether they are a Nationwide customer, enabling anyone to seek expert support from an Admiral Nurse in their community.

We have also embedded two Admiral Nurses in Nationwide for the duration of the partnership. They are supporting colleagues affected by dementia through virtual clinic appointments, and helping the building society improve its support for vulnerable people, including customers impacted by dementia.

You can read more about how our Dementia at Work Team is supporting Nationwide on page 20.

Nationwide’s incredible impact

In our first year working together, we supported 29,173 people through our partnership activities. This was only possible because of the generosity of Nationwide in donating and fundraising for Dementia UK.

To celebrate the launch of Fairer Futures, Nationwide committed to donating up to £500,000 to its three charity partners, offering members the opportunity to choose a charity to donate to as part of their Annual General Meeting vote. A large number of generous members chose to donate to Dementia UK; these funds will be used to grow our policy and public affairs work with the aim of improving dementia care and support.

Nationwide is supporting Time for a Cuppa – our annual tea party fundraising event. It officially sponsored the campaign in May 2025, providing a platform to engage colleagues, customers and members of the public in the flagship event so that together, we can support more families facing dementia.

Rebecca O’Neill-Kerr, Admiral Nurse working with Nationwide

Nationwide colleagues have also gone above and beyond to support our partnership, from taking part in dog walking challenges to hosting quiz nights and volunteering to promote our branch clinics.

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What’s next

What’s next Feedback from Nationwide After a year in partnership, Nationwide and dementia clinics Dementia UK will now be focusing on: “It was absolutely amazing • increasing the reach and take-up of to speak to somebody who branch clinics understood what I was going • training for frontline colleagues who through and had the time to support vulnerable customers, including those with dementia listen. We weren’t just given a load of leaflets and signposted • Nationwide providing its expertise and to someone else. The Nationwide experience to support with Dementia UK’s digital development clinic has had a lasting positive impact on me and I’m so • supporting our policy and public affairs grateful to the Admiral Nurses agenda, including a parliamentary Time for a Cuppa drop-in event for MPs and Nationwide.” Branch clinic attendee We are truly grateful to Nationwide, its colleagues and members for their support “The nurse was compassionate so far. and patient with me… [She] To find out more about our partnership, please listened to my worries and fears visit nationwide.co.uk/dementia with empathy and kindness. I’ve worked for Nationwide for almost 22 years, and meeting the Admiral Nurse is probably the most profoundly impactful conversation I’ve had at work.” Nationwide staff clinic attendee an CO li om eae AMM, a he : be) ! > ce ein ie ty : " Ag =e, ¥ : a a ce “5 Oa oo LF swrr J. Nationwide’s Time for a Cuppa event[-]

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Shara’s story

My mum, Anna, was the strongest person I’ve ever known. She raised three daughters on her own, teaching us how to be strong, independent and hard-working women.

Throughout our childhood, Mum juggled multiple jobs, often across day and night shifts. She loved cooking and feeding people, and while we didn’t have a garden, our balcony was an incredible display of pots and hanging baskets.

When she entered her mid-70s, I started to notice changes in Mum’s behaviour. Documents and paperwork were stacking up, with bills left unpaid. She became forgetful, often leaving food burning on the hob. And she began to withdraw socially, which was completely out of character.

I convinced Mum to visit the GP in 2015. A year later, she was diagnosed with vascular dementia, aged 79.

It’s heartbreaking when someone you love receives a dementia diagnosis. But what I wasn’t expecting was the complete lack of follow-up and support. I lost count of the number of health professionals who nodded their way through appointments, saying how sad it was and that it wasn’t going to get better.

When I finally succeeded in proving to Social Services that Mum had no money, was on benefits and was in desperate need of care, they gave us access to a care team. But the turnover in carers was such that Mum often thought there were strangers in her own house and would become agitated. Many of them were overworked, underpaid and not adequately trained in dementia care.

“Admiral Nurse Kerry was a shining light”

I could not have coped through this stressful time without the Dementia UK Helpline and its Admiral Nurses. Initially, I felt a sense of guilt for using a service I wasn’t paying for, which put me off calling. Looking back, that was a mistake, as by the time I did call, I was desperate. I wish I hadn’t let myself get to that point.

Because of Mum’s poor physical health, I was put in touch with Kerry, Dementia UK’s Consultant Admiral Nurse for Frailty and Physical Health. We met regularly via virtual appointments after my initial call to the Helpline, and she was a godsend.

In 2023, Mum had a number of falls, and after a traumatic 32-hour wait in A&E, she was admitted to hospital for eight weeks. Kerry was a great support at this upsetting time. She understood the pressures of the hospital setting, and suggested practical tips like making a ‘patient passport’ to help the staff understand Mum’s history, her likes and dislikes and who she was as a person. This helped them care for her better.

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Kerry also taught me so much about Mum’s advancing frailty and corresponding continence issues, weight loss, pain, poor mobility and risk of falls. When the time came, she guided us through the hospital discharge process and helped us find a suitable care home for Mum’s final months.

Alongside all of this, Kerry was there for me. I was so consumed with stress and worry that my own wellbeing had well and truly taken a backseat. She reminded me that in order to be the best carer I could be, I needed to look after myself too.

Mum died in April 2024. I’m still processing her loss, and grief has very much been a journey for me. But Kerry’s support meant the world, and I’m so grateful for everything she did for us.

When I remember Mum, I like to think of her laughing. She had the most beautiful laugh and a smile that could light up a room. She never lost either, right up to the end.

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Nurturing our supporters

The work of our Supporter Care and Database Services Team and Dynamics 365 Implementation Project Team ensures we provide our valued fundraisers and donors with the best experience of supporting Dementia UK.

Our objectives for 2024-25

Our achievements

Using our data effectively means we can understand our supporters better and give them complete confidence in supporting Dementia UK. To this end, in 2024-25 we continued our database migration project to Dynamics 365, which will improve how we store, manage and use our supporters’ data.

Once fully live, the database will ensure our supporters have the best possible experience of Dementia UK, encouraging them to continue raising funds to support and grow our Admiral Nursing services.

To ensure our supporters’ confidence in how we handle their data, we continued to oversee adherence to data protection regulations, updated several fundraising policies, and provided support to fundraising teams to ensure all activities are compliant.

Our team has continued to contribute to the charity’s supporter experience project and implemented several process changes in response to mystery shopping feedback. We have significantly improved donation processing and thanking timeframes and centralised our phone lines by taking over the Community Fundraising and Events Team’s calls, giving supporters one central number for all fundraising enquiries.

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Responding to complaints

As members of the Chartered Institute of Fundraising and the Fundraising Regulator, we adhere to the Code of Fundraising Practice and are committed to the Fundraising Promise. There were no instances of non-compliance with the Code this year.

We make it easy for people to contact us with their complaints, which can be registered by phone, email, post or online form and are forwarded to the Supporter Care Team. Depending on the severity, they may be escalated to more senior members of staff. We work together with each supporter in resolving their complaint and record the process and resolution on our database.

In 2024-25, we received 96 general complaints, a reduction of three from 2023-24 despite an increase in fundraising activity, evidenced by our higher income. Our complaints are classified according to four levels – Level 1 being the most serious, and Level 4 the least.

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Level 1: 0
Level 2: 2
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Level 3: 36

Level 4: 58

Our overall volume of complaints is low for a charity of our size. We are pleased that we had no Level 1 complaints, and the number of Level 2 and Level 3 complaints were significantly lower than in 2023-24, showing that the complaints we do receive are less serious.

Supporter Manny Singh Kang, who has raised over £300,000 for Dementia UK, with members of the Fundraising Team

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Third-party fundraising

We work with a small number of third parties, including commercial organisations and professional fundraisers, to raise money. We deliver training and support to professional fundraisers, including outlining how to recognise and protect vulnerable people and adhere to our Vulnerable donors policy (see right). We closely monitor all third parties, including compliance reviews of all contracts, regular review meetings and call listening.

In 2024-25 we received eight complaints about contact from third-party fundraisers. These were categorised as either a dislike of the method of fundraising or related to the conduct of a fundraiser.

In the instances of dislike of the method of fundraising, the supporter was given the opportunity to opt out, and this was actioned if they requested a change in their communication preference. Where fundraiser conduct was the nature of the complaint, an apology was sent to the supporter and the details were passed over to the relevant third party for them to undertake additional training with the individual fundraiser. Examples of real complaints are used in our third-party fundraiser training to try to prevent similar complaints from occurring.

All complaints related to third party fundraising were successfully resolved.

Protecting vulnerable donors

At Dementia UK, we are committed to fundraising in an honest and responsible way, so we take care to act appropriately with people who may be in vulnerable circumstances. ‘Vulnerable’ in this context refers to people who may lack the appropriate decision-making capacity to support Dementia UK financially.

Our Vulnerable donors policy sets out our framework for recognising potential vulnerability during interactions with supporters, and the escalation process for addressing this and making a decision about whether we can accept a donation.

In certain cases, according to the policy we may refuse or refund a donation from an individual if we have sufficient grounds to believe that they lack capacity and that therefore accepting a donation from them would be unethical. This is in line with the Chartered Institute of Fundraising’s ‘Treating donors fairly’ guidance.

The policy also makes it clear that having dementia does not in itself class someone as vulnerable; the assessment should always be based on their behaviours and communications, regardless of any condition they may have. The policy provides guidance for recognising these, again with reference to ‘Treating donors fairly’.

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What we’ll do next: our priorities for 2025-26

Complete the implementation of the new fundraising database and the associated data architecture.

Enter a continuous improvement phase after database go-live , continuing to develop the data architecture to significantly improve the management

and use of data and drive our evolving fundraising programme.

Further improve supporter experience by continually reviewing and updating business practices and processes; and effectively leveraging the benefits of new technologies.

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Our people and culture

Our People and Organisational Development Team plays a pivotal role in building a supportive, inclusive and high-performing culture at Dementia UK, enabling staff to thrive and deliver real impact for families affected by dementia.

Our objectives for 2024-25

Our achievements

We engaged every member of staff in the development of the strategy and provided the opportunity to contribute through our annual staff conference and virtual workshops. We further sought more in-depth involvement from more than 60 staff representatives through dedicated working groups, fully consulting LEAP throughout the process.

We have used the findings to develop a strategic framework for the next five years, built around three pillars and three enablers:

A core focus for our team this year was the development of our 2025-30 strategy, designed to unite the charity around a bold and clear purpose. This began with identifying the barriers we are facing in achieving our vision of a world where no one faces dementia alone – where everyone gets the specialist support they need.

We developed a theory of change to sit around the strategic framework and conducted a landscape review for each of the pillars and enablers to inform our top objectives in each area.

People affected by dementia, all staff and key external partners were invited to feed back on

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the first draft of the strategy through an online consultation exercise or focus groups, with over 250 responses. The process of developing detailed delivery plans with clear priorities is now underway.

Growing our organisation

Recruiting highly skilled and committed people who align with our vision and values is crucial in ensuring we provide families affected by dementia with the best possible support. To raise our profile as an employer of choice, we were featured in articles in several publications, including an interview with our Chief Admiral Nurse and CEO Dr Hilda Hayo in Charity Times. This contributed to the high volume of qualified candidates applying for vacancies.

We introduced our first dedicated online recruitment platform, streamlining the candidate experience and embedding inclusive practices such as anonymous applications and other measures to minimise bias. We gained Inclusive Hirers accreditation, enabling us to further improve the inclusivity of our recruitment process.

Across the year, 112 posts were filled, 71 of which were new roles for the charity. 22%

of advertised roles were filled by internal candidates. Our recruitment process has received exceptional reviews on the job search site Glassdoor.

We are committed to being an employer of choice and are delighted to have been named the Sunday Times Best Place to Work – non-profit and charities (big organisation): please see page 72 for more information. We are actioning feedback received as part of the survey process to make continuous improvements for the benefit of our staff.

Valuing our staff

Our staff are our greatest asset, and we regularly celebrate our successes at our monthly all-staff meetings and our annual conference. These provide opportunities to relay information and updates to staff, collect their feedback and enable them to ask any questions that they wish.

This year, we also launched our quarterly staff Recognition Awards, for individuals and teams who embody our values through their work.

As part of our commitment to developing our staff, we extended our Learning Programme

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to offer more opportunities for training and development. We developed a bespoke Dementia UK job evaluation framework, supporting transparency around pay and progression within the charity. We also hold regular Lunch and Learn sessions to ensure our teams are connected and up to date.

Colleagues are invited to participate in focus groups and workshops throughout the year, for example in the development of the 2025-30 strategy, detailed on page 68, and in new policy development. Staff have the opportunity to attend Trustee and sub-committee meetings, where they can present to Trustees on their areas of work and what they see as the challenges and opportunities.

We also maintained our focus on providing excellent support to – and a high standard of communication with – our Volunteer Ambassadors, recruiting a new role dedicated to supporting them.

Supporting equality, diversity and inclusion

As a Disability Confident Employer, Dementia UK is committed to supporting job applicants and employees with disabilities. We implement a range of adjustments during the recruitment process and subsequent employment to improve accessibility, enabling disabled people to join and thrive in our team.

Our internal Recruitment Team is trained in inclusive hiring practices, ensuring that our job adverts and recruitment processes are as accessible as possible.

Through our health review process, we take an active approach to supporting employees with health conditions, helping to keep them in work.

Diversity and Inclusion (EDI) Network. We are proud to have achieved Menopause Friendly Accreditation and developed our own Menopause Hub, demonstrating our support for staff at this life stage. We have also signed the Pregnancy Loss Pledge.

Working together as one

To ensure we are collaborating across the charity, we have implemented new project management approaches. This included launching a cross-organisation planning document to provide Dementia UK staff with central visibility of key activity, timelines and resource requirements, helping us to plan more proactively and collaboratively.

One such project is the refurbishment of our Head Office to create a workspace that better meets Dementia UK’s needs as a hybrid organisation. We held collaborative discussions with members of staff to create an appropriate office environment for our growing team. This will ensure we can work as effectively as possible.

We offer a range of diversity and inclusion training and awareness-raising opportunities to all staff, including through our Equality,

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What we’ll do next: our priorities for 2025-26

Begin implementation of our strategy delivery plans .

Standardise and improve our project management ways of working, adopting best practice that is tailored to the needs of Dementia UK.

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Spotlight The Sunday Times Best Places to Work Awards

In 2025, Dementia UK was delighted to be named as the Sunday Times Best Place to Work in the non-profit and charities – big organisation category.

This achievement reflects our commitment to ensuring every member of staff feels valued, receives the support they need to thrive professionally and personally, and recognises the charity as a great place to work. It comes off the back of our 2025 staff survey, which provided a vital opportunity to establish how colleagues feel about working at Dementia UK.

Our staff surveys help us recognise where we are doing well and where improvements could be made. The feedback means we can take action to address these areas of focus, ensuring that we are listening to our staff and continuously improving their experience of working for Dementia UK.

Our previous staff survey in 2023 showed that our staff were proud to work for our charity

Dementia UK staff members with the Sunday Times Best Places to Work Award

Dementia UK Annual Report 2024-25

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and would recommend it to others. As a result, we decided to enter the Sunday Times Best Places to Work Awards in 2025, with the hope of being recognised as an employer of choice in the charity sector. It was an opportunity to celebrate our culture and working environment, raise awareness of Dementia UK as a great place to work and encourage more talented people to join our team.

The Sunday Times Best Places to Work survey was administered by a third-party employee engagement provider and sent to all staff, with an excellent completion rate of 79%.

The results were overwhelmingly positive and gave us cause for celebration, and receiving the Sunday Times Best Places to Work 2025 Award confirms that we are officially the best large charity to work for in the UK.

What’s next?

We are delighted to have received the Sunday Times Award; however, we will not stop here. Based on the results of the staff survey, we will continuously strive to make Dementia UK an even better place to work by focusing on the areas colleagues have highlighted for improvement.

This will ensure we provide the best possible experience for our staff, so everyone feels proud to work towards our common vision: a world where no one faces dementia alone – where everyone gets the specialist support they need.

The award is a recognition of the culture we have built together, around our values of compassion, collaboration, integrity and ambition. It will strengthen our voice and credibility, help us attract and retain talented people, and raise our profile so even more families affected by dementia know they can turn to us for support.

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IT: keeping our systems running

Our vital work supporting families depends on the technology we use every day. Our IT Team ensures it is secure, efficient and reliable.

Our objectives for 2024-25

Our achievements

Our programme to upgrade and standardise our equipment to ensure all devices are compliant with Cyber Essentials standard was completed in 2024-25. We have updated our equipment and improved security. This will ensure our technological capabilities support future growth that enables us to be there for more families facing dementia.

To make sure our services for the people we support are uninterrupted in the event of unplanned disruption, we have undertaken analysis and established that appropriate back-ups are being taken for our critical systems.

Cyber resilience is essential to protect Dementia UK from security vulnerabilities and risk. We have worked to identify the assets that need to be protected, the threats that could pose a risk to those assets, and potential vulnerabilities. We continually educate staff about the importance of cyber security, particularly being aware of malicious email attacks.

This all ensures our services are secure and reliable, so we can work as efficiently and effectively as possible to provide families with the expert, uninterrupted dementia support they need.

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What we’ll do next: our priorities for 2025-26

Develop and implement a five-year IT strategic roadmap aligned with Dementia UK’s 2025-30 strategy, collaborating with key colleagues regarding timing, change management and implementation plans to ensure our systems support the charity’s growth.

Establish a disaster recovery testing schedule for business-critical systems. This will ensure that the organisation is well prepared to activate technology service restoration procedures in the event of a technology or system outage.

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Governance, compliance and risk

We ensure that Dementia UK complies with the necessary legal and regulatory requirements, mitigates against risk and has appropriate governance systems in place, ensuring the best possible support for families facing dementia.

Our objectives for 2024-25

Our achievements

Throughout the year, we made significant strides in implementing robust organisational policies and processes encompassing the full spectrum of corporate and information governance. This included developing comprehensive Information security, AI usage and Data protection policies. We also led the refresh of the data retention schedule to bring it in line with the Data retention and disposal policy.

To ensure that our support for families facing dementia does not falter in the event of unexpected adverse circumstances, we partnered with an external organisation to develop a business continuity framework across the charity. As part of this project, we undertook business impact analysis, which highlighted two critical areas:

As a result, we created a set of business continuity response cards, which set out a plan for managing crisis situations across the charity that would directly impact our supporters or beneficiaries. We tested some of these through a crisis simulation exercise to practise how we would use our response cards in such a situation.

In recognition of this work, Dementia UK won the ‘Strategy through partnership’ award at the 2025 Cyber Incident Response Business Continuity Awards.

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Our approach to risk management

To build a risk-aware culture at Dementia UK and identify operational risks, we have recruited Risk Champions across the organisation who are responsible for promoting and supporting risk management practices within their own directorates.

May 2024 saw the charity’s first exercise on risk appetite. We worked with the Executive Team and Trustees to assess the degree of risk we consider acceptable in different areas of the organisation, introducing a sliding scale model from ‘averse’ to ‘eager’. This ensures that Dementia UK has a balanced risk appetite that allows us to develop and innovate in how we support families affected by dementia.

We have undertaken risk inductions and training to ensure staff across the organisation are better equipped in their understanding of risk management and identification. These include a bespoke session for Admiral Nurses as part of the Nationwide dementia clinics programme, and risk training for Trustees.

Through our ‘Three lines of defence’ model of risk management, we provided advice and support on legal matters, data protection and governance. We also conducted two internal audits on cyber security and pensions and ensured that the recommendations were implemented in a timely manner.

In addition, we have helped reduce reputational and financial risk to the charity by strengthening our procurement and contract management capacity, ensuring that our resources are used efficiently and effectively in any commitments the charity makes.

What we’ll do next: our priorities for 2025-26

Become more efficient in risk and

governance matters , introducing new software for the effective management of policies and contracts with third parties.

Enhance our risk management framework through a rolling programme of internal audits and piloting a new system to further embed timely risk monitoring.

Develop our business continuity and

crisis management processes , including more testing of Dementia UK’s business continuity response cards to identify areas of improvement.

Undertake compliance audits on policies, providing independent and objective verification of policies.

Improve governance on legal and data protection matters; the introduction of governance, risk and compliance tools will also help with the effective management of relevant data protection logs.

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Making the most of our funds

We want every penny we raise to have the maximum impact on the families we support. Our Finance Team enables this, growing Dementia UK sustainably and ensuring our funds are used as effectively as possible.

Our objectives for 2024-25

Our achievements

Following the implementation of our new purchase order and expenses system, we have continued to explore ways to enhance our automation, including in our budgeting, forecasting and reporting processes. We embarked on a finance transformation journey and have started implementing a new, fully integrated financial management, reporting and procurement system.

Procurement Manager who plays a key role in embedding the policy through staff training sessions, central guidance and templates. The Procurement Manager also brings a strategic focus to making value for money central to our purchasing decisions, maximising the impact of the funds we raise for families facing dementia.

We have improved our due diligence processes to better protect our reputation and resources regarding our third-party supplier engagements. We have also started developing internal finance process KPIs, which include liquidity, and our reserves cover.

Throughout the year, we enhanced our support for other departments in the organisation to enable them to make effective, financially informed decisions and assessments.

All these activities ensure that we use our funds for the maximum possible benefit for the families we support.

In the past year, the charity has developed and implemented a comprehensive Procurement policy to ensure consistency and transparency in our procurement activities. We recruited a

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What we’ll do next: our priorities for 2025-26

Continue our financial transformation

by launching and establishing a new, fully integrated finance solution that is scalable, futureproof and flexible. The system will provide real-time insights; encourage collaboration and engagement for all users across the charity; and offer development opportunities for the Finance Team.

Continue to explore opportunities for cost savings and efficiency improvements. We will enhance our due diligence procedures for new and existing suppliers to safeguard our reputation and resources. We will also foster strong supplier relationships through better collaboration, improving overall performance.

Develop and implement a five-year financial plan aligned to Dementia UK’s strategy for 2025-30, in partnership with the wider organisation. We will test its resilience through scenario planning and risk assessment.

Develop effective business partnering

to help make informed decisions, using real-time information flow to allow the organisation to be more effective in managing its resources.

Develop a Treasury management policy to optimise funds management, generate a stronger financial return from our funds held and improve stewardship of monetary assets.

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Financial review

The Trustees present their report and audited consolidated financial statements for the year ended 31[st] March 2025.

All Trustees are also Directors for the purpose of company law, and the Trustees’ Report represents the Directors’ Report required by section 417 of the Companies Act 2006.

Objectives and activities for public benefit

The Trustees confirm that they have referred to the Charity Commission’s guidance on public benefit when reviewing the aims and objectives in planning future activities.

Summary

The financial statements have been prepared in accordance with applicable accounting standards, current statutory requirements, the requirements of the Statement of Recommended Practice (SORP), Accounting and Reporting by Charities (SORP 2015), and the charity’s governing document.

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Income
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Income and expenditure

Our income increased by £8.9m to £31.4m in 2025 (2024: £22.5m). This was £2.7m above our forecast expectations set during autumn 2024, largely due to donations, legacies and interest from short-term deposits being higher than projected.

Our total expenditure was £24.8m (2024: £18.8m), which was £2m below forecast expectations of £26.8m. Delays in recruitment and large projects contributed towards cost savings. We achieved a net surplus for reinvestment of £6.6m (2024: £3.7m).

Our net assets totalled £25.3m (2024: £18.7m) with net current assets of £23.1m (2024: £16.6m). The liquid cash balance (accessible within one year) was £23m (2024: £17.6m).

Included within the group income and expenditure above are the results for our trading subsidiary, Dementia UK Trading, which generated profit of £24,135 (2024: £16,995) from a turnover of £181,947 (2024: £46,196). Further detail can be found in note 15 to the accounts.

The Trustees consider that there are no material uncertainties about the charity’s ability to continue as a going concern. This is based on detailed budget and cash flow projections for 2025-26.

Donations and legacies £29.6m Charitable activities £0.7m Other £1.1m

Total £31.4m

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Expenditure
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Raising funds £9.4m Admiral Nurse activities £12.0m Public awareness £3.0m Research and publications £0.4m

Total £24.8m

Structure, governance and management

Board of Trustees

The Board of Trustees is the governing body that administers the charity. All major decisions are made by the Board, which meets at least four times a year to discuss and formulate policy, risk and strategic direction. All Trustees give their time voluntarily and receive no benefits from the charity. Any expenses reclaimed from the charity are set out in note 9 to the accounts.

Company Secretary:

The Trustees of the charity are also the Directors of the company for the purpose of company law, and any reference to Trustees is therefore also to Directors. None of the Trustees has a beneficial interest in the company, and the charitable company held third-party indemnity insurance on behalf of the Trustees during the current and prior year.

Trustees in office since 1st April 2024 are:

Working with our stakeholders

As Directors of the charity, the Trustees have a duty under section 172(1) of the Companies Act 2006 to act in the way that they consider, in good faith, would be most likely to promote the success of the charity in achieving its charitable purposes. The act states that in doing so, the Trustees should have regard, amongst other matters, to:

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A. The likely consequence of any decision in the long term.

Dementia UK recognises the importance of having a clear strategy to guide us as we seek to grow our support for people affected by dementia and their families. Dementia UK’s strategy for 2025-30 will ensure we continue on our growth trajectory as we address the ever-increasing demand for our services and support.

Performance against the strategy, and any risks to delivery of this, are considered regularly at meetings of the Board and its committees, which have clearly defined terms of reference and delegations to ensure that decisions are made in the best interests of beneficiaries, both now and in the future.

B. The interests of the organisation’s employees.

We are proud of our values at Dementia UK and seek to bring these into consideration in everything we do. Our recognition as the Sunday Times Best Place to Work: non-profit and charities (big organisation) in 2025 is a key indicator of the investment we make in our people.

We support the interests of our employees in many ways, including:

C. The need to foster the organisation’s business relationships with suppliers, customers and others.

We engage regularly with the NHS and were active in campaigning for improvements in dementia care in the recently announced NHS 10-year health plan for England. We believe that the plan now shows the Government is committed to taking significant steps to improve dementia care.

The views of our beneficiaries are essential to our work. We consult our Lived Experience Advisory Panel (LEAP) and Lived Experience Advisory Network (LEAN) to inform our strategy and our work. We also have many volunteers who are instrumental in growing awareness of and support for Dementia UK, helping us generate the income that we need to provide our vital services.

We have a number of active corporate partners, whose support helps us develop our services for families living with dementia. We also work with our partners to embed our specialist knowledge into their organisations, allowing them to better recognise and support the needs of employees and customers affected by dementia.

D. The impact of the organisation’s operations on the community and the environment.

We seek to locate services where they are needed, both remotely through our Helpline and virtual clinics and in healthcare and community settings where people can access them most easily. We aim to ensure that access to our services is as easy as possible to minimise travel and disruption for the people who need our support.

We have invested in our leasehold offices in central London, providing an improved space for hybrid working, investing in technology and processes to enable better connectivity, and seeking to minimise our carbon footprint through effective procurement.

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We have introduced reporting under the Streamlined Energy and Carbon Reporting (SECR) legislation this year (see pages 87-88) and will be monitoring our performance against it going forward.

E. The desirability of the organisation maintaining a reputation for high standards of business conduct.

Clear and transparent business processes and stakeholder engagement are vital for effective business operations. Dementia UK has strengthened its approach to supply chain management with the establishment of a procurement function and the introduction of new finance and procurement systems. These will enable us to improve the efficiency and effectiveness of our purchases and foster stronger relationships with our business partners.

We also recognise the importance of ensuring that there is a sound governance framework in place within the organisation, particularly in the light of the sometimes complex regulatory framework within which we operate. We have embedded risk management and a robust policy framework within the organisation, supported by an insourced internal audit function, designed to provide an appropriate degree of assurance to key stakeholders.

F. The need to act fairly between members of the organisation.

Dementia UK is a UK charity and a registered company, limited by guarantee. Its purpose is to deliver benefit to its beneficiaries. The membership of the company is limited to the Trustees of the charity and no Trustees, either directly or indirectly, received any benefit from Dementia UK in the financial year.

Trustee recruitment, appointment and induction

The existing Trustees of Dementia UK are empowered under the Articles of Association

to elect new Trustees of the charity and to make co-options at any other time.

Dementia UK seeks to include a wide skillset within the Board of Trustees, and as part of our governance process, Trustees identify and remedy any gaps in skills on the Board.

We recruit new Trustees in different ways, including advertising vacancies and reaching out to people who are involved and interested in our work. We invite potential new Trustees to observe at least one Board meeting to guide their decision about whether to agree to nomination as a Trustee.

We have an induction programme for all new Trustees of Dementia UK. This includes meeting the Chief Admiral Nurse/CEO, along with other members of staff across the charity. We also provide them with relevant historical documentation.

Sub-committees of the Board of Trustees

Trustees belong to at least one of three sub-committees that oversee and advise on the charity’s work and report to the Board. This contributes to the smooth running of Dementia UK. The three sub-committees are:

Each committee meets at least four times a year and includes at least one-third of the number of Trustees in office, with one acting as Chair for these meetings. The Trustees contribute their relevant interests and skills to the work of the committees.

Chief Admiral Nurse/CEO and Executive Team

The Chief Admiral Nurse/CEO and Executive Team are responsible for the day-to-day affairs of Dementia UK, including operational matters,

84 Dementia UK Annual Report 2024-25

and a scheme of delegation is in place. The members of Dementia UK’s Executive Team are:

Principal risks and uncertainties

As the governing body, the Board of Trustees has overall accountability for risk management at the charity. It ensures that Dementia UK has in place effective internal controls to manage risks, whilst maximising opportunities.

The Strategic Risk Register is updated by the Executive Team and then reviewed by the Trustees at every sub-committee and Board meeting.

We are continuing to develop our Risk appetite policy and plan to have this in place later in 2025.

The main risks identified that the charity faces are:

Risk of not meeting net income targets, mainly as a result of relying heavily on voluntary income and the cost of living remaining high.

This risk is mitigated by our robust fundraising strategy, the creation of a diverse range of income streams (both long- and short-term) and having specific targets and KPIs. We saw an increase in voluntary and legacy income in 2025, although the future income from

legacies is difficult to forecast, therefore a level of uncertainty remains.

We also encourage and drive innovation and continually develop ways for existing and new donors to support and strengthen their engagement with, and commitment to, Dementia UK.

Risk that the integrity and reputation of the Admiral Nurse brand may be negatively impacted.

This is mitigated by ensuring all the systems, processes and support are in place to ensure the effective recruitment, maintenance and development of Admiral Nurses and Admiral Nurse services.

Admiral Nurses receive regular clinical supervision and their practice is guided by the Admiral Nurse Competency Framework, which outlines the knowledge, skills and attributes that they are required to demonstrate.

The Admiral Nurse Academy continues to grow and provides opportunities for continued professional development, including webinars, interactive learning, short courses and a leadership programme.

Risk of a cyber-attack on the charity’s IT systems, resulting in loss of data, ransom payment and reputational damage.

The charity has strategies in place to limit the impact of a threat, and we have invested in several systems and initiatives this year to protect unauthorised access to the Dementia UK network. We have achieved this by continuously identifying, prioritising and remediating vulnerabilities. We have also introduced robust policies and processes to provide assurance on how our IT infrastructure is managed.

We do, however, recognise that cyber-attacks are becoming more sophisticated by the day and there are many uncertainties associated with this. We are procuring third-party cyber

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security services which will be onboarded in the coming year.

Risk of data breaches, privacy incidents or security incidents (including third-party).

This is mitigated by keeping up-to-date documentation in alignment with GDPR legislation, including a Data retention policy and schedule; Data privacy policy; record of processing activities; and information asset register. We are also striving to enhance staff awareness, education and the promotion of a cultural shift to embed the ‘privacy by design and default’ principle across all organisational activities.

The Governance Team ensures the monitoring of internal compliance on data privacy; informs and advises on data protection obligations; provides advice regarding data protection impact assessments; and acts as a contact point for data subjects and the Information Commissioner.

Risk of financial mismanagement, poor financial planning or cash flow and inadequate reserves.

The risk of financial mismanagement is mitigated by having robust financial policies and procedures in place, supported by clear engagement with budget holders across the organisation. In addition, we report on the organisational financial performance regularly to the Board of Trustees to inform decisions on reserves, budget performance and overall financial health.

The charity has short- and long-term cashflow projections in place to help manage liquidity and optimise returns on unspent funds. We ensure we maintain adequate levels of free reserves to cover us for any unexpected events.

The charity is implementing a new financial system, supported by strengthened policies, which will streamline and automate many

processes and allow more efficient reporting (real-time) and better cashflow modelling.

Reserves policy

The charity holds unrestricted reserves to ensure we can continue to operate in the event of any unforeseen and significant decreases in income.

The Board of Trustees’ policy with regards to unrestricted reserves has been set at three to six months of projected unrestricted expenditure.

The Trustees aim to achieve this by careful management of the charity’s resources and reviewing the Reserves policy at least annually.

As of 31[st] March 2025, we held £17.3m in general reserves after deducting the Net Book Value of Fixed Assets (2024: £12.4m). This represents six months of total planned future operational costs.

The Trustees are of the opinion that maintaining reserves at this level is prudent given that voluntary donations are the main source of income for Dementia UK and carry high risks of sharp and sudden decline. The external environment presents uncertainties, and the high cost of living remains a significant challenge for the organisation. In addition, economic fluctuations are anticipated due to the US Government’s strategy of introducing high tariffs, which may have knock-on effects on UK markets and consumer confidence.

The Trustees consider that the reserves level is in line with best practice within the charity sector and guidance from the Charity Commission; and will give the charity time to continue its vital work supporting people with dementia and their families while finding alternative sources of income should we see a sudden drop in voluntary donations.

As of 31[st] March 2025, the charity held £4.9m of designated funds (2024: £4.9m), of which £688,582 (2024: £1m) is held for

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the New Nurse Fund, expected to be spent by 2027; £2m (2024: £1.3m) is for systems development work to be completed by 2026; £600,000 (2024: £600,000) is set aside for digital transformation of services, expected to be completed in 2028; £850,000 (2024: £850,000) for investment in fundraising to be spent in 2025-26; and £816,781 (2024: £942,000) for clinical activities to be spent by 2027.

The charity held restricted funds totalling £2.1m at 31[st] March 2025 (2024: £1.2m). All funds are held for specific Admiral Nursing projects that have been funded by donations for the development and support of the services which Admiral Nurses provide.

Investment policy

The Trustees’ investment powers are governed by the Memorandum and Articles of Association, which permit the charity’s funds to be invested in a wide range of securities and assets.

The charity holds long-term investments with two investment companies, Sarasin and Partners LLP and Ruffer LLP. As of 31[st ] March 2025, the market value of these investments totalled £1.6m; £1.1m in Sarasin and Partners LLP and £480,000 in Ruffer LLP.

The purpose of investments is to preserve and protect the value of donations received from the adverse impacts of inflation until such time as they are allocated towards charitable activities.

The charity aims for a diversified investment portfolio that seeks to produce the best financial return within an acceptable level of risk.

The charity’s investment objective is capital growth: to invest long-term reserves with a view to capital preservation, with a focus on protection against inflation. There are no current plans for future spending

commitments that the portfolio will fund, other than to protect against inflation.

The funds allocated towards investment are unrestricted and no donor restrictions have been placed on them.

In line with capital preservation, any income earned from the fund is to be accumulated and invested back into the portfolio. The charity does not expect to withdraw any investments in its long-term reserves and aims to invest no more than 25% of unrestricted net assets in long-term investments.

The charity is dedicated to ensuring that funds are invested in a responsible and ethical manner, incorporating environmental, social and governance considerations with particular emphasis on stewardship. The charity restricts investments in alcohol, tobacco, gambling, pornography, armaments, oil sands and thermal coal.

The Trustees have set a performance benchmark of CPI +3% a year in line with the investment strategy. The performance of our portfolio managers is kept under close and regular review and will be measured against inflation and agreed market indices. The level of capital volatility will be monitored to ensure the risk profile remains appropriate for the charity. For the financial year 2024-25, the portfolio performances of Sarasin and Partners LLP and Ruffer LLP were 3.8% and (4)% respectively.

The charity has nominated a list of authorised signatories, two of whom are required to sign instructions to the Investment Manager. The investment firms will provide quarterly reports on the valuation of investments, transactions, cash reconciliation, performance analysis and commentaries.

The Trustees of the charity have delegated the decision-making on investment matters to the Finance, Risk and Audit Committee (FRAC).

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FRAC has the responsibility for:

FRAC will review the information provided by the Investment Manager at least annually at the committee meeting to gain insights into investment performance and in-depth analysis to enable informed decision-making.

Remuneration policy for key management personnel

Dementia UK has a Remuneration policy, and pay for the CEO and Senior Management Team is decided by Trustees, who review pay based on market rates and benchmarking against charities of comparable size.

The CEO’s remuneration for 2024-25 was a base salary of £130,000. This is five times more than the lowest paid staff member. Our CEO works four days per week and accordingly she was paid £104,000 in 2024-25.

Key relationships

Dementia UK seeks to build strong relationships with a wide variety of stakeholders.

We ensure we have effective and mutually beneficial relationships with our suppliers; we seek to build outstanding relationships with our supporters (see Nurturing our supporters, page 64; Individual giving, page 50; Spotlight on the ThankAthon, page 56; and Working in partnership, page 58, amongst others); with local and national government and the NHS (see Campaigning for change, page 39) and with the media (see Spreading the word, page 44).

Energy and carbon reporting

In line with the Streamlined Energy and Carbon Reporting (SECR) legislation, we are required to report our energy consumption and greenhouse gas emissions arising in the UK. All Scope 1 and Scope 2 sources of energy and emissions have been disclosed as well as mandatory Scope 3 sources of energy and emissions.

As this is our first year of reporting, this will be our base year for future comparisons.

We have one Head Office, and utilities are provided via our landlord who has provided us with actual consumption figures for the period. Our reporting is reflective of that.

We are always working to reduce our carbon emissions. Our Travel and expenses policy encourages staff to use public transport wherever possible as an alternative to travelling by car. We restrict travel to that which is only necessary, encouraging green transportation modes and providing remote access to events where possible.

In 2025-26 we will be introducing a cycle to work scheme to further encourage use of green transportation modes.

We also seek to put experience of dementia at the heart of the charity. We do this through:

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Methodology

The conversion factors used in this report are from the UK Government Greenhouse Gas (GHG) Reporting (2024) as published by the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero and the Department for Environmental Food and Rural Affairs. Reporting has been compiled in line with the HM Government Environmental Reporting Guidelines (March 2019).

We have used our turnover as a metric of measurement.

Scope 1
Direct
emissions
gas		 Scope 2
Indirect
emissions
electricity		 Scope 3
Indirect
emissions
business
travel
Energy
consumed		 0kWh 19,487kWh 50,608
miles
Conversion
factor		 kWh
(net CV)
0.20399		 kg CO2e/
kWh
0.20493		 kg CO2e/
mile
0.27064
Emissions
(tCO2e)		 0 3,993.47 13,696.50
Performance
indicator
(turnover in
millions)		 £30m £30m £30m
Emissions
ratio (tonnes
of CO2/
turnover)		 0 1,355 2,190

Reference and administrative details

Legal status

Dementia UK is established as a charitable company limited by guarantee and is registered with the Charity Commission under charity number 1039404 (England and Wales) and SC 047429 (Scotland).

The charity’s affairs are governed by its Memorandum and Articles of Association incorporated 30[th ] June 1994, as amended 28[th ] March 2024, which allow for any activities covered by the charity’s objectives with no specific restrictions.

The liability of the members in the event of the company being wound up is limited to a sum not exceeding £1.

Registered office and operational address

Dementia UK, 7[th ] Floor, One Aldgate, London EC3N 1RE

Bankers

Lloyds Bank, PO Box 1000, Andover BX1 1LT

National Westminster Bank Plc, 250 Bishopsgate, London EC2M 3UR

Investment Managers

Sarasin and Partners LLP, Juxon House, 100 St Paul’s Churchyard, London EC4M 8BU

Ruffer LLP, 80 Victoria Street, London SW1E 5JL

Please note:

Scope 1: there are no Scope 1 emissions. There are no transportation costs to declare under Scope 1 emissions for the period as there were no company-owned cars or business fleet. There is no gas in use in our Head Office.

Scope 3: emissions based on expense data for employee-owned vehicles; as data about the engine size and fuel type of vehicles is not available, CO2 emissions are calculated using ‘cars (by size) average car’ kg CO2e/mile.

Statutory Auditor

Sayer Vincent LLP, Chartered Accountants and Statutory Auditor, 110 Golden Lane, London EC1Y 0TG

Internal Auditor

Grant Thornton LLP, 8 Finsbury Circus, London EC2M 7EA

Solicitor

Charles Russell Speechlys LLP, 5 Fleet Place, London EC4M 7RD

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Trustees’ responsibilities in relation to the financial statements

The charity’s Trustees (who are also the Directors of Dementia UK for the purposes of company law) are responsible for preparing the Trustees’ Annual Report, including the Strategic Report and financial statements, in accordance with applicable law and United Kingdom Accounting Standards (United Kingdom Generally Accepted Accounting Practice).

Company law requires the charity’s Trustees to prepare financial statements for each year, which give a true and fair view of the state of affairs of the charitable company and the group; and of the incoming resources and application of resources, including the income and expenditure, of the charitable group for that period. In preparing the financial statements, the Trustees are required to:

responsible for safeguarding the assets of the charity and the group and hence taking reasonable steps for the prevention and detection of fraud and other irregularities.

The Trustees are responsible for the maintenance and integrity of the corporate and financial information included on the charitable company’s website.

Legislation in the UK governing the preparation and dissemination of financial statements may differ from legislation in other jurisdictions.

Statement as to disclosure to our auditor

Insofar as the Trustees are aware at the time of approving our Trustees’ Annual Report:

The Trustees’ Annual Report, which includes the Strategic Report, has been approved by the Trustees on 20[th ] August 2025 and signed on their behalf by:

Professor David Croisdale-Appleby OBE Chair of Trustees

The Trustees are responsible for keeping adequate accounting records that disclose, with reasonable accuracy at any time, the financial position of the charity; and for ensuring that the financial statements comply with the Companies Act 2006. They are also

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Independent Auditor’s report for the year ended 31[st] March 2025

Opinion

Basis for opinion

We have audited the financial statements of Dementia UK (the ‘parent charitable company’) and its subsidiary (the ‘group’) for the year ended 31[st] March 2025 which comprise the consolidated statement of financial activities; the group and parent charitable company balance sheets; the consolidated statement of cash flows; and the notes to the financial statements, including significant accounting policies.

The financial reporting framework that has been applied in their preparation is applicable law and United Kingdom Accounting Standards, including FRS 102 The Financial Reporting Standard applicable in the UK and Republic of Ireland (United Kingdom Generally Accepted Accounting Practice).

In our opinion, the financial statements:

We conducted our audit in accordance with International Standards on Auditing (UK) (ISAs (UK)) and applicable law. Our responsibilities under those standards are further described in the auditor’s responsibilities for the audit of the financial statements section of our report.

We are independent of the group in accordance with the ethical requirements that are relevant to our audit of the financial statements in the UK, including the Financial Reporting Council’s Ethical Standard, and we have fulfilled our other ethical responsibilities in accordance with these requirements. We believe that the audit evidence we have obtained is sufficient and appropriate to provide a basis for our opinion.

Conclusions relating to going concern

In auditing the financial statements, we have concluded that the Trustees’ use of the going concern basis of accounting in the preparation of the financial statements is appropriate.

Based on the work we have performed, we have not identified any material uncertainties relating to events or conditions that, individually or collectively, may cast significant doubt on Dementia UK’s ability to continue as a going concern for a period of at least 12 months from when the financial statements are authorised for issue.

Our responsibilities and the responsibilities of the Trustees with respect to going concern are described in the relevant sections of this report.

91

Other information

The other information comprises the information included in the Trustees’ Annual Report, including the Strategic Report, other than the financial statements and our auditor’s report thereon. The Trustees are responsible for the other information contained within the Annual Report. Our opinion on the financial statements does not cover the other information and, except to the extent otherwise explicitly stated in our report, we do not express any form of assurance conclusion thereon.

Our responsibility is to read the other information and, in doing so, consider whether the other information is materially inconsistent with the financial statements, or our knowledge obtained in the course of the audit, or otherwise appears to be materially misstated. If we identify such material inconsistencies or apparent material misstatements, we are required to determine whether this gives rise to a material misstatement in the financial statements themselves. If, based on the work we have performed, we conclude that there is a material misstatement of this other information, we are required to report that fact.

We have nothing to report in this regard.

Opinions on other matters prescribed by the Companies Act 2006

In our opinion, based on the work undertaken in the course of the audit:

Matters on which we are required to report by exception

In the light of the knowledge and understanding of the group and the parent charitable company and its environment obtained in the course of the audit, we have not identified material misstatements in the Trustees’ Annual Report, including the Strategic Report.

We have nothing to report in respect of the following matters in relation to which the Companies Act 2006 and Charities Accounts (Scotland) Regulations 2006 (as amended) requires us to report to you if, in our opinion:

Responsibilities of Trustees

As explained more fully in the statement of Trustees’ responsibilities set out in the Trustees’ Annual Report, the Trustees (who are also the Directors of the parent charitable company for the purposes of company law) are responsible for the preparation of the financial statements and for being satisfied that they give a true and fair view, and for such internal control as the Trustees determine is necessary to enable the preparation of financial statements that are free from material misstatement, whether due to fraud or error.

In preparing the financial statements, the Trustees are responsible for assessing the group’s and the parent charitable company’s

92 Dementia UK Annual Report 2024-25

ability to continue as a going concern, disclosing, as applicable, matters related to going concern and using the going concern basis of accounting unless the Trustees either intend to liquidate the group or the parent charitable company or to cease operations, or have no realistic alternative but to do so.

Auditor’s responsibilities for the audit of the financial statements

We have been appointed as auditor under section 44(1)(c) of the Charities and Trustee Investment (Scotland) Act 2005 and under the Companies Act 2006 and report in accordance with regulations made under those acts.

Our objectives are to obtain reasonable assurance about whether the financial statements as a whole are free from material misstatement, whether due to fraud or error, and to issue an Auditor’s Report that includes our opinion. Reasonable assurance is a high level of assurance, but is not a guarantee that an audit conducted in accordance with ISAs (UK) will always detect a material misstatement when it exists. Misstatements can arise from fraud or error and are considered material if, individually or in the aggregate, they could reasonably be expected to influence the economic decisions of users taken on the basis of these financial statements.

Irregularities, including fraud, are instances of non-compliance with laws and regulations.

We design procedures in line with our responsibilities, outlined above, to detect material misstatements in respect of irregularities, including fraud. The extent to which our procedures are capable of detecting irregularities, including fraud, are set out on the right.

Capability of the audit in detecting irregularities

In identifying and assessing risks of material misstatement in respect of irregularities, including fraud and non-compliance with laws and regulations, our procedures included the following:

- detecting and responding to the risks of fraud and whether they have knowledge of any actual, suspected or alleged fraud

Dementia UK Annual Report 2024-25 93

relationships that may indicate risks of material misstatement due to fraud

Because of the inherent limitations of an audit, there is a risk that we will not detect all irregularities, including those leading to a material misstatement in the financial statements or non-compliance with regulation.

This risk increases the more that compliance with a law or regulation is removed from the events and transactions reflected in the financial statements, as we will be less likely to become aware of instances of non-compliance. The risk is also greater regarding irregularities occurring due to fraud rather than error, as fraud involves intentional concealment, forgery, collusion, omission or misrepresentation.

for no other purpose. To the fullest extent permitted by law, we do not accept or assume responsibility to anyone other than the charitable company, and the charitable company’s members as a body, for our audit work, for this report, or for the opinions we have formed.

Noelia Serrano (Senior Statutory Auditor) 16 October 2025

For and on behalf of Sayer Vincent LLP Statutory Auditor 110 Golden Lane London EC1Y 0TG

Sayer Vincent LLP is eligible to act as auditor in terms of section 1212 of the Companies Act 2006.

A further description of our responsibilities is available on the Financial Reporting Council’s website at

frc.org.uk/auditorsresponsibilities

This description forms part of our Auditor’s Report.

Use of our report

This report is made solely to the charitable company’s members as a body, in accordance with Chapter 3 of Part 16 of the Companies Act 2006 and section 44(1)(c) of the Charities and Trustee Investment (Scotland) Act 2005.

Our audit work has been undertaken so that we might state to the charitable company’s members those matters we are required to state to them in an Auditor’s Report and

94 Dementia UK Annual Report 2024-25

For the year ended 31[st] March 2025

Consolidated statement of financial activities

(incorporating an income and expenditure account)

----- Start of picture text -----
2025 2024
Unrestricted Restricted Total Unrestricted Restricted Total
Note £ £ £ £ £ £
Income from:
Donations and legacies 2 25,709,177 3,894,259 29,603,436 19,991,306 1,675,487 21,666,793
Charitable activities
Admiral Nursing projects 3 94,780 376,493 471,273 68,292 196,780 265,072
Admiral Nurse service development 3 196,125 - 196,125 208,249 - 208,249
Research and publications 3 25,738 - 25,738 23,105 - 23,105
Other trading activities 4 253,064 - 253,064 111,803 - 111,803
Investments 5 874,139 - 874,139 266,852 - 266,852
Total income 27,153,023 4,270,752 31,423,775 20,669,607 1,872,267 22,541,874
Expenditure on:
Raising funds 6a 9,300,080 122,515 9,422,595 7,070,107 - 7,070,107
Charitable activities
Admiral Nursing 6a 6,388,009 2,726,034 9,114,043 4,822,675 1,749,829 6,572,504
Admiral Nurse service development 6a 1,306,974 - 1,306,974 1,185,642 - 1,185,642
Admiral Nurse Academy 6a 1,259,036 330,284 1,589,320 1,132,930 179,518 1,312,448
Total Admiral Nurse activities 6a 8,954,019 3,056,318 12,010,337 7,141,247 1,929,347 9,070,594
Public awareness 6a 2,878,916 103,626 2,982,542 2,372,797 - 2,372,797
Research and publications 6a 394,711 2,691 397,402 305,023 3,059 308,082
Total charitable activities 12,227,646 3,162,635 15,390,281 9,819,067 1,932,406 11,751,473
Total expenditure 21,527,726 3,285,150 24,812,876 16,889,174 1,932,406 18,821,580
Net income before net gains/(losses)
on investments 5,625,297 985,602 6,610,899 3,780,433 (60,139) 3,720,294
Net gains/(losses) on investments 14 23,183 - 23,183 (14,997) - (14,997)
Net income for the year 8 5,648,480 985,602 6,634,082 3,765,436 (60,139) 3,705,297
Transfers between funds 1,022 (1,022) - - - -
Funds transferred out
to Age UK Oxfordshire 23 - - - - (95,766) (95,766)
Net movement in funds 5,649,502 984,580 6,634,082 3,765,436 (155,905) 3,609,531
Reconciliation of funds:
Total funds brought forward 17,516,766 1,157,747 18,674,513 13,751,330 1,313,652 15,064,982
Total funds carried forward 22 23,166,268 2,142,327 25,308,595 17,516,766 1,157,747 18,674,513
----- End of picture text -----

All of the above results are derived from continuing activities. There were no other recognised gains or losses other than those stated above. Movements in funds are disclosed in note 22 to the financial statements.

95

Consolidated balance sheets

As at 31[st] March 2025

Company no. 02944156

Note
Fixed assets:
Tangible assets
13a
Intangible assets
13b
Investments
14
Current assets:
Debtors
17
Short-term deposits
Cash at bank and in hand
Liabilities:
Creditors: amounts falling due within one year
18
Net current assets
Total assets less current liabilities
Creditors: amounts falling due after one year
19
Total net assets
21
Funds:
22a
Restricted income funds
Unrestricted income funds:
Designated funds
General funds
Total unrestricted funds
Total funds		 Thegroup
The charity
2025
2024
2025
2024
£
£
£
£
38,796
34,532
38,796
34,532
848,001
190,143
848,001
190,143
1,640,831
2,064,611
1,640,832
2,064,612
2,527,628
2,289,286
2,527,629
2,289,287
2,708,990
2,033,928
2,792,833
2,055,874
20,616,633
14,000,000
20,616,633
14,000,000
2,382,048
3,620,738
2,214,162
3,593,423
25,707,671
19,654,666
25,623,628
19,649,297
(2,641,592)
(3,019,856)
(2,560,457)
(3,017,396)
23,066,079
16,634,810
23,063,171
16,631,901
25,593,707
18,924,096
25,590,800
18,921,188
(285,112)
(249,583)
(285,112)
(249,583)
25,308,595
18,674,513
25,305,688
18,671,605
2,142,327
1,157,747
2,142,327
1,157,747
4,946,424
4,867,439
4,946,424
4,867,439
18,219,844
12,649,327
18,216,937
12,646,419
23,166,268
17,516,766
23,163,361
17,513,858
25,308,595
18,674,513
25,305,688
18,671,605

Approved by the Trustees on 20[th] August 2025 and signed on their behalf by

Professor David Croisdale-Appleby OBE David Stewart Chairman Treasurer

96 Dementia UK Annual Report 2024-25

Consolidated statement of cash flows For the year ended 31[st] March 2025

Note
Net cash fows from operating activities
24
Cash fows from investing activities:
Interest and dividends receivable
Purchase of fxed assets
Proceeds from sale of investments
Purchase of investments
Investments in short-term deposits
Net cash used in investing activities
Change in cash and cash equivalents in the year
Cash and cash equivalents at the beginning of the year
25
Cash and cash equivalents at the end of the year
25		 2025 2024
£
4,788,566
874,139
(731,725)
500,000
(53,037)
(6,616,633)		 £
1,565,293
266,852
(174,904)
-
(52,838)
(7,410,290)
(6,027,256) (7,371,180)
(1,238,690)
3,620,738		 (5,805,887)
9,426,625
2,382,048 3,620,738

97

1. Accounting policies

Dementia UK is a charitable company limited by guarantee and is incorporated in England and Wales. The registered office address and principal place of business is 7[th ] Floor, One Aldgate, London EC3N 1RE.

The financial statements have been prepared in accordance with Accounting and Reporting by Charities: Statement of Recommended Practice applicable to charities preparing their accounts in accordance with the Financial Reporting Standard applicable in the UK and Republic of Ireland (FRS 102) – (Charities SORP FRS 102), the Financial Reporting Standard applicable in the UK and Republic of Ireland (FRS 102) and the Companies Act 2006.

Assets and liabilities are initially recognised at historical cost or transaction value unless otherwise stated in the relevant accounting policy or note.

These financial statements consolidate the results of the charitable company and its wholly-owned subsidiary, Dementia UK Trading Limited, on a line-by-line basis. Transactions and balances between the charitable company and its subsidiary have been eliminated from the consolidated financial statements. Balances between the two companies are disclosed in the notes of the charitable company’s balance sheet. A separate statement of financial activities, or income and expenditure account, for the charitable company itself is not presented because the charitable company has taken advantage of the exemptions afforded by section 408 of the Companies Act 2006. c Public benefit entity The charitable company meets the definition of a public benefit entity under FRS 102.

d Going concern The Trustees consider that there are no material uncertainties about the charitable company’s ability to continue as a going concern.

The Trustees are of the view that the immediate future of the charity for the next 12 months is secure on the basis of confirmation of continuing income streams and fundraising activity to generate additional income streams. Accordingly, the financial statements have been prepared on the going concern basis.

The Trustees do not consider that there are any sources of estimation uncertainty at the reporting date that have a significant risk of causing a material adjustment to the carrying amounts of assets and liabilities within the next reporting period.

Income is recognised when the charity has entitlement to the funds, any performance conditions attached to the income have been met, it is probable that the income will be received and that the amount can be measured reliably.

Income from Government and other grants, whether ‘capital’ grants or ‘revenue’ grants, is recognised when the charity has entitlement to the funds, any performance conditions attached to the grants have been met, it is probable that the income will be received and the amount can be measured reliably and is not deferred.

98 Dementia UK Annual Report 2024-25

Income received in advance of the provision of a specified service is deferred until the criteria for income recognition are met.

99

Irrecoverable VAT is charged as a cost against the activity for which the expenditure was incurred.

j Grants payable

k Allocation of support costs

Grants payable are made to third parties in furtherance of the charity’s objects. Single or multi-year grants are accounted for when either the recipient has a reasonable expectation that they will receive a grant and the Trustees have agreed to pay the grant without condition, or the recipient has a reasonable expectation that they will receive a grant and that any condition attaching to the grant is outside of the control of the charity.

Resources expended are allocated to the particular activity where the cost relates directly to that activity.

Where information about the aims, objectives and projects of the charity is provided to potential beneficiaries, the costs associated with this publicity are allocated to charitable expenditure.

Where such information about the aims, objectives and projects of the charity is also provided to potential donors, activity costs are apportioned between fundraising and charitable activities on the basis of area of literature occupied by each.

Support costs are the cost of overall direction and administration, comprising the salary and overhead costs of the central function.

Governance costs are the costs associated with the governance arrangements of the charity. These costs are associated with constitutional and statutory requirements and include any costs associated with the strategic management of the charity’s activities.

Support and governance costs are re-allocated to each of the activities on the following basis which is an estimate, based on staff time, of the amount attributable to each activity:

• Raising funds 26%
• Admiral Nursing 50%
• Admiral Nurse service development 8%
• Admiral Nurse Academy 8%
• Public awareness 6%
• Research and publications 2%

l Operating leases

Rental charges are charged on a straight line basis over the term of the lease.

100 Dementia UK Annual Report 2024-25

m Tangible and intangible fixed assets

Items of equipment, fixtures and fittings, IT hardware and IT software are capitalised where the purchase price exceeds £1,500. Depreciation and amortisation costs are allocated to activities on the basis of the use of the related assets in those activities. Assets are reviewed for impairment if circumstances indicate their carrying value may exceed their net realisable value and value in use.

Where fixed assets have been revalued, any excess between the revalued amount and the historic cost of the asset will be shown as a revaluation reserve in the balance sheet.

Depreciation and amortisation are provided at rates calculated to write down the cost of each asset to its estimated residual value over its expected useful life. The rates in use are as follows:

Tangible assets

Intangible assets

Listed investments are included in the balance sheet initially at cost and revalued at the reporting date to bid price. Unrealised gains and losses on investments at the balance sheet date are included in the Statement of Financial Activities (SOFA) for the relevant underlying funds. The historical cost of investments is shown in note 14 to the financial statements.

Investment

Investments in subsidiaries are at cost.

p Debtors

Any expenditure that exceeds £1,500 and is paid in advance or is related to a future dated event is held as a prepayment on the balance sheet. The prepayment is subsequently released to the SOFA in the month or months that the expenditure is incurred. Prepayments are valued at the amount prepaid net of any trade discounts due.

Cash at bank and cash in hand includes cash and short-term highly liquid investments with a short maturity of three months or less from the date of acquisition or opening of the deposit or similar account.

101

s Creditors and provisions

Creditors and provisions are recognised where the charity has a present obligation resulting from a past event that will probably result in the transfer of funds to a third party and the amount due to settle the obligation can be measured or estimated reliably. Creditors and provisions are normally recognised at their settlement amount after allowing for any trade discounts due.

t Financial instruments

The charity only has financial assets and financial liabilities of a kind that qualify as basic financial instruments. Basic financial instruments are initially recognised at transaction value and subsequently measured at their settlement value.

The charity subscribes to a defined contribution scheme for the benefit of its employees. Contributions payable are charged to the SOFA in the year they are payable.

The charity also subscribes to the NHS Pension Scheme, a multi-employer defined benefit pension scheme. It is not possible to identify the assets or liabilities relating to the charity, therefore the charity accounts for contributions to the scheme as if it were a defined contribution scheme. Contributions payable are charged to the SOFA in the year they are payable.

2. Income from donations and legacies

Community, events and innovation
Individual giving and in memory
Legacies
Philanthropy and partnerships
Other voluntary donations		 2025
2024
Unrestricted
Restricted
Total
Unrestricted
Restricted
Total
£
£
£
£
£
£
11,044,870
116,518
11,161,388
9,480,501
116,016
9,596,517
5,682,432
12,122
5,694,554
5,337,856
27,467
5,365,323
5,028,034
185,690
5,213,724
3,599,071
105,000
3,704,071
3,953,841
3,579,929
7,533,770
1,568,901
1,427,004
2,995,905
-
-
-
4,977
-
4,977
25,709,177
3,894,259
29,603,436
19,991,306
1,675,487
21,666,793

3. Income from charitable activities

Admiral Nursing – fees and contributions
from institutions
Management and development fees
Research and publications – contributions
from institutions
Total income from charitable activities		 2025
2024
Unrestricted
Restricted
Total
Unrestricted
Restricted
Total
£
£
£
£
£
£
94,780
376,493
471,273
68,292
196,780
265,072
196,125
-
196,125
208,249
-
208,249
25,738
-
25,738
23,105
-
23,105
316,643
376,493
693,136
299,646
196,780
496,426

102 Dementia UK Annual Report 2024-25

4. Income from other fundraising activities

2025 2024
Unrestricted Restricted Total Unrestricted Restricted Total
£ £ £ £ £ £
Carol concert, Christmas cards 71,117 - 71,117 65,607 - 65,607
and merchandise
Income from trading subsidiary 181,947 - 181,947 46,196 - 46,196
253,064 - 253,064 111,803 - 111,803
5. Income from investments
2025 2024
Unrestricted Restricted Total Unrestricted Restricted Total
£ £ £ £ £ £
Dividends 76,455 - 76,455 52,998 - 52,998
Bank interest 797,684 - 797,684 213,854 - 213,854
874,139 - 874,139 266,852 - 266,852

6a. Analysis of expenditure (current year )

Charitable activities

Charitable activities
Staf costs
(note 9)
Direct activity
costs
IT and telephone
Ofce and
administration
costs
Professional fees
Premises
Support costs
Governance costs
Total
**expenditure 2025 **		 Raising
funds
Admiral
Nursing
Admiral Nurse
service
development
Admiral
Nurse
Academy
Public
awareness
Research
and
publications
Governance
costs
Support
costs
2025
total
2024
total
£
£
£
£
£
£
£
£
£
£
2,993,313
5,287,115
878,817 1,078,349
1,341,125
276,503
370,495 2,847,403 15,073,120 12,126,194
3,069,358
807,054
-
80,115
1,140,191
2,804
-
- 5,099,522 4,046,639
145,730
226,334
-
-
74
-
-
939,186 1,311,324
861,621
390,525
26,367
1,803
4,502
100,418
598
4,451
274,633
803,297
623,392
1,438,020
102,461
-
-
80,969
10,908
183,992
226,620 2,042,970
760,342
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
482,643
482,643
403,392
8,036,946 6,449,331
880,620 1,162,966
2,662,777
290,813
558,938 4,770,485 24,812,876 18,821,580
1,240,325
2,385,243
381,639
381,639
286,229
95,410
- (4,770,485)
-
-
145,324
279,469
44,715
44,715
33,536
11,179
(558,938)
-
-
-
9,422,595 9,114,043
1,306,974 1,589,320 2,982,542
397,402
-
- 24,812,876 18,821,580

103

6b. Analysis of expenditure (prior year)

Charitable activities

Admiral Admiral Research
Raising Admiral Nurse service Nurse Public and Governance Support 2024
funds Nursing development Academy awareness publications costs costs total
£ £ £ £ £ £ £ £ £
Staf costs
(note 9) 2,782,977 3,991,035 876,682 930,782 1,046,367 225,599 345,866 1,926,886 12,126,194
Direct activity
costs 2,539,342 455,154 - 73,473 975,511 3,159 - - 4,046,639
IT and telephone 102,513 182,311 - 1,152 - - - 575,645 861,621
Ofce and
administration
costs 216,797 25,614 2,307 388 70,770 2,632 12,188 292,696 623,392
Professional fees 431,859 1,811 - - 50,160 29 66,765 209,718 760,342
Premises - - - - - - - 403,392 403,392
6,073,488 4,655,925 878,989 1,005,795 2,142,808 231,419 424,819 3,408,337 18,821,580
Support costs 886,167 1,704,169 272,667 272,667 204,500 68,167 - (3,408,337) -
Governance costs 110,452 212,410 33,986 33,986 25,489 8,496 (424,819) - -
Total
expenditure 2024 7,070,107 6,572,504 1,185,642 1,312,448 2,372,797 308,082 - - 18,821,580

7. Grant making

7. Grant making
Cost
Admiral Nursing projects
At the end of the year		 2025
2024
£
£
746,957
426,886
746,957
426,886

During 2025, the charity provided investment for Admiral Nurses in five (2024: five) new services. All grants made in 2025 and 2024 were grants to institutions. These costs are included in note 6a under ‘Direct activity costs’. Further details can be found on our website: dementiauk.org

8. Net income for the year

Includes the below charges:

2025 2024
£ £
Depreciation and amortisation 69,603 72,371
Operating lease rentals:
Property 425,648 359,836
Other 47,405 78,950
Auditors’ remuneration (excluding VAT):
Audit − current year 25,950 24,700
Other services − VAT and Corporation Tax services 2,920 7,400

104 Dementia UK Annual Report 2024-25

9. Analysis of staff costs, Trustee remuneration and expenses, and the cost of key management personnel

Staff costs were as follows:

Salaries
Termination/redundancy costs
Employer’s National Insurance contributions
Employer’s contributions to defined contribution pension scheme
Employer’s contributions to defined benefit pension scheme
Other staff-related costs		 2025
2024
£
£
11,613,437
9,422,877
4,200
27,779
1,260,228
1,020,695
727,549
621,725
354,144
248,567
1,113,562
784,551
15,073,120
12,126,194

The following number of employees received employee benefits (excluding employer pension costs and employer’s National Insurance) during the year between:

2025 2024
No. No.
£60,000-£69,999 15 17
£70,000-£79,999 7 3
£80,000-£89,999 2 2
£90,000-£99,999 - 3
£100,000-£109,999 4 -
£110,000-£119,99 1 -

The total employee benefits (including pension contributions and employer’s National Insurance) of the key management personnel were £644,144 (2024: £557,783).

The charity’s Trustees were neither paid nor received any other benefits from employment with the charity in the year (2024: £nil). No charity Trustee received payment for professional or other services supplied to the charity (2024: £nil).

Trustees’ expenses represent the payment or reimbursement of travel and subsistence costs totalling £3,274 (2024: £3,113) incurred by five (2024: three) members relating to attendance at meetings. The charity also incurred expenditure totalling £701 on Trustees’ meetings in the year (2024: £614).

105

10. Staff numbers

The average number of employees (head count based on number of staff paid per month) during the year was 273 (2024: 238).

This includes sessional employees and other employees who received no pay in certain months (head count based on number per month); the average during the year was 19 (2024: 20).

Raising funds
Admiral Nursing projects
Admiral Nurse service development
Admiral Nurse Academy
Public awareness
Research and publications
Support		 2025
N0.
2024
N0.
75
57
91
89
16
16
18
17
25
21
6
4
42
33
273
238

11. Related party transactions

There are no related party transactions to disclose for 2025 (2024: none) other than those already disclosed in note 8.

There are no donations from related parties which are outside the normal course of business and no restricted donations from related parties.

The total amount of donations received from related parties, without conditions, was £13,293 (2024: £355).

12. Taxation

The charity is exempt from Corporation Tax as all its income is charitable and is applied for charitable purposes. The charity’s trading subsidiary, Dementia UK Trading Limited, Gift Aids available profits to the parent charity depending upon operational requirements. In 2024-25, Dementia UK Trading Limited made a profit before tax of £24,135 (2024: £17,207) and £24,135 profits (2024: £14,000) were Gift Aided to the charity. Therefore, its charge to Corporation Tax in the year was £nil (2024: £609).

The directors of Dementia UK Trading Limited are William Roe, Paul Edwards, Martin Bishop and Suruchi Saraf (until 20[th] August 2025). William Roe is a Trustee of Dementia UK and all other directors are staff members employed by Dementia UK.

106 Dementia UK Annual Report 2024-25

13a. Tangible fixed assets

Group and charity
Cost
At the start of the year
Additions in year
At the end of the year
Depreciation
At the start of the year
Charge for the year
At the end of the year
Net book value
At the end of the year
At the start of the year
13b. Intangible assets
Group and charity
Cost
At the start of the year
Additions in year
At the end of the year
Depreciation
At the start of the year
Charge for the year
At the end of the year
Net book value
At the end of the year
At the start of the year		 Equipment
Fixtures and
fttings
£
£
6,646
206,869
1,529
-		 IT hardware
Total
£
£
44,029
257,544
13,326
14,855
8,175
206,869		 57,355
272,399
820
206,869
1,662
-		 15,323
223,012
8,929
10,591
2,482
206,869		 24,252
233,603
5,693
-		 33,103
38,796
5,826
-		 28,706
34,532
IT software
Total
£
£
304,315
304,315
716,870
716,870
1,021,185
1,021,185
114,172
114,172
59,012
59,012
173,184
173,184
848,001
848,001
190,143
190,143

All of the above assets are used for charitable purposes. A presentational adjustment has been made to IT software, which was presented in the prior year under Tangible fixed assets in 2024 (2025: £33,103; 2024: £28,706). It has now been separated into Intangible assets in 2025 (2025: £848,001; 2024: £190,143).

107

14a. Fixed asset investments

14a. Fixed asset investments
2025
2024
£
£
Market value at 1stApril 2,064,611
2,026,770
Less:
Disposals at carrying value (500,000)
-
Add:
Acquisitions at cost 53,037
53,425
Net cash reinvested -
(587)
Realised and unrealised gains/(losses) 23,183
(14,997)
Market value at 31st March 1,640,831
2,064,611
Historical cost at 31st March 1,583,970
2,064,609
Asset allocation 2025
2025		 2024
2024
£
%		 £
%
Alternative investments 220,325
13		 241,331
12
Equities 932,640
57		 1,001,169
48
Fixed income 336,679
21		 723,924
35
Liquid assets 107,189
6		 58,336
3
Property 43,999
3		 39,852
2
Total 1,640,831
100		 2,064,611
100

14b. Investment in subsidiary undertaking

14b. Investment in subsidiary undertaking
At the start and the end of the year Thegroup
The charity
2025
2024
2025
2024
£
£
£
£
-
-
1
1

108 Dementia UK Annual Report 2024-25

15. Subsidiary undertaking

The charitable company owns the whole of the issued ordinary share capital of Dementia UK Trading Limited, a company registered in England. All activities have been consolidated on a line-by-line basis in the statement of financial activities. A summary of the results of the subsidiary is shown below:

Turnover
Cost of sales
Gross proft
Administrative expenses
Proft on ordinary activities before taxation
Taxation on proft on ordinary activities
Proft for the fnancial year
Total retained earnings brought forward
Distribution under Gift Aid to parent charity
Total retained earnings carried forward
The aggregate of the assets, liabilities and funds was:
Assets
Liabilities
Funds		 2025
2024
£
£
181,947
46,196
(142,788)
(23,412)
39,159
22,784
(15,024)
(5,577)
24,135
17,207
-
(212)
24,135
16,995
2,908
(87)
(24,135)
(14,000)
2,908
2,908
200,933
28,742
(198,024)
(25,833)
2,909
2,909

16. Parent charity

The parent charity’s gross income and the results for the year are disclosed as follows:

2025 2024
£ £
Gross income 31,335,463 22,492,678
Result for the year 6,609,947 3,592,536

109

17.Debtors

17.Debtors
Trade debtors
Prepayments
Accrued income
Amounts due from group undertakings		 Thegroup
2025
2024
£
£
97,949
68,947
1,025,419
920,648
1,585,622
1,044,333
-
-		 The charity
2025
2024
£
£
90,449
68,947
1,025,420
920,648
1,585,622
1,044,333
91,342
21,946
2,708,990
2,033,928		 2,792,833
2,055,874

The charity received notifications regarding a number of legacies before the year end totalling £3,483,699. However, these legacies did not meet the full income recognition criteria as per the accounting policy as at 31[st] March 2025, and therefore, have not been accrued in the 2025 financial statements (2024: £2,005,237).

18.Creditors: amounts falling due within one year

Trade creditors
Taxation and social security
Other creditors
Accruals
Deferred income
Admiral Nurse projects − grant accruals		 Thegroup
2025
2024
£
£
667,417
781,324
618,614
436,202
13,305
12,655
448,874
436,582
181,813
74,417
711,569
1,278,676		 The charity
2025
2024
£
£
651,795
780,124
644,161
437,417
13,305
12,655
445,974
434,107
93,653
74,417
711,569
1,278,676
2,641,592
3,019,856		 2,560,457
3,017,396

110 Dementia UK Annual Report 2024-25

19. Creditors: amounts falling due after one year

Admiral Nurse projects − grant accruals Thegroup
2025
2024
£
£
285,112
249,583		 The charity
2025
2024
£
£
285,112
249,583
285,112
249,583		 285,112
249,583

Total grant commitments outstanding as at 31[st] March 2025 relating to the recruitment of Admiral Nurses payable to health institutions were £996,681 (2024: £1,528,259), of which payable within one year were £711,569 (2024: £1,278,676) and after one year were £285,112 (2024: £249,583). The amounts due within one year are included within accruals in note 18 above.

20. Pension schemes

The charity operates two pension schemes, a group personal pension scheme, administered by Aviva, and NHS Pensions. As at 31[st ] March 2025, the amounts owed to the scheme were Aviva £101,674 (2024: £82,089) and NHS £nil (2024: £nil). The number of members in Aviva is 241 and NHS 67. The NHS Pension Scheme is an unfunded occupational scheme backed by the Exchequer, which is open to all NHS employees and certain employees of other approved organisations. Dementia UK is an approved organisation. The scheme is a defined benefit scheme. The scheme receives contributions from employees and employers to defray the costs of pensions and other benefits. From 1[st] April 2006 the NHS Business Services Authority (NHSBSA) has been the body responsible for the administration of the NHS Pension Scheme for England and Wales. In support of NHSBSA, NHS employers are required to explain the scheme to the employees. In addition, they submit pension data to NHSBSA. Every four years the Government Actuary conducts a full actuarial review of contribution rates. In order to defray the costs of benefits, in 2024-25 employers paid contributions of 14.38% of actual pensionable pay. From April 2024, there was a change to member contribution rates from the Department of Health and Social Care. From this date, employees contributed on a tiered scale from 5.2%-12.5% of their actual pensionable pay. Further information on benefits can be obtained from the NHS Pension Scheme website.

111

21a. Analysis of group net assets between funds (current year)

Tangible fixed assets
Intangible fixed assets
Fixed asset investments
Net current assets
Long-term liabilities
Net assets at 31st March 2025		 General
unrestricted
Restricted
funds
Total
funds
£
£
£
38,796
-
38,796
848,001
-
848,001
1,640,831
-
1,640,831
20,830,337
2,235,741
23,066,079
(191,698)
(93,414)
(285,112)
23,166,268
2,142,327
25,308,595

21b. Analysis of group net assets between funds (prior year)

Tangible fixed assets
Intangible fixed assets
Fixed asset investments
Net current assets
Long-term liabilities
Net assets at 31st March 2024		 General
unrestricted
Restricted
funds
Total
funds
£
£
£
34,532
-
34,532
190,143
190,143
2,064,611
-
2,064,611
15,381,646
1,253,16
16,634,810
(154,167)
(95,417)
(249,583)
17,516,766
1,157,747
18,674,513

22a. Movements in funds (current year)

At 1stApril Income Expenditure Transfers Gains and At 31st March At 31st March
2024 and gains and losses losses 2025
£ £ £ £ £ £
Restricted funds:
Admiral Nursing projects (Helpline and 75,394 605,400 (124,695) - - 556,099
professional and practice development)
Admiral Nursing learning and disability 165,202 497,056 (196,868) (1,022) - 464,368
service and new nurse (national)
Admiral Nursing projects (geographical funds): -
Buckinghamshire - 103 23,500 - - 23,603
Cambridgeshire 13,135 15,000 (3,500) - - 24,635
Devon 34,114 58,395 (68,399) - - 24,110
Dorset (Purbeck) 39,068 1,895 (3,500) - - 37,463
Essex 14,318 - 10,548 - - 24,866
Gateshead 20,000 31,640 (34,000) - - 17,640
Leeds 165,786 14,802 (59,855) - - 120,733
Leicestershire 50,759 14,876 (3,339) - - 62,296

112 Dementia UK Annual Report 2024-25

Continued

London
Northamptonshire
Nottinghamshire
Scotland
Stafordshire
Sussex
Wales
Yorkshire
Other geographical restricted funds
(less than £10,000 balances at 31stMarch 2025)
Nationwide
YoungDementia UK projects
Total restricted funds
Unrestricted funds:
Designated funds:
New Nurse Fund
Investment in systems development
Investment in charitable activities
Clinical services digital development
Investment in clinical activities
Investment in fundraising
Total designated funds
General funds
Total unrestricted and designated funds
Total funds		 At 1stApril
2024
Income
and gains
Expenditure
and losses
Transfers
Gains and
losses
At 31st March
2025
£
£
£
£
£
£
188,431
59,541
(184,732)
-
-
63,240
28,577
300
(14,000)
-
-
14,877
15,912
50,165
(5,912)
-
-
60,165
44,800
1,699
-
-
-
46,499
25,298
-
(7,000)
-
-
18,298
83,213
13,261
-
-
-
96,474
77,761
500
(19,250)
-
-
59,011
-
137,992
(52,500)
-
-
85,492
-
113,463
424,663
(497,328)
-
-
40,798
-
-
2,316,600
(2,014,940)
-
-
301,660
2,516
26,864
(29,380)
-
-
-
1,157,747
4,270,752
(3,285,150)
(1,022)
-
2,142,327
1,000,325
-
(311,743)
-
-
688,582
1,334,015
-
(32,954)
690,000
-
1,991,061
141,099
-
(141,099)
-
-
-
600,000
-
-
-
-
600,000
942,000
-
(125,219)
-
-
816,781
850,000
-
(850,000)
850,000
-
850,000
4,867,439
-
(1,461,015)
1,540,000
-
4,946,424
12,649,327
27,153,023
(20,066,711) (1,538,978)
23,183
18,219,844
17,516,766
27,153,023
(21,527,726)
1,022
23,183
23,166,268
18,674,513 31,423,775 (24,812,876)
-
23,183
25,308,595

113

22b. Movements in funds (prior year)

At 1stApril Income and Expenditure Transfers Gains and At 31st March
2023 gains and losses losses 2024
£ £ £ £ £ £
Restricted funds:
Admiral Nursing projects (Helpline and 60,000 564,742 (549,348) - - 75,394
professional and practice development)
Admiral Nursing learning and disability 112,713 206,485 (153,996) - - 165,202
service and new nurse (national)
Admiral Nursing projects (geographical funds):
Cambridgeshire 48,635 16,000 (51,500) - - 13,135
Devon 40,745 59,735 (66,366) - - 34,114
Dorset (Purbeck) 33,209 859 5,000 - - 39,068
Essex 14,318 - - - - 14,318
Gateshead 20,000 - - - - 20,000
Isle of Wight 16,709 9,500 (14,000) - - 12,209
Leeds 55,187 328,319 (217,720) - - 165,786
Leicestershire 46,170 14,389 (9,800) - - 50,759
London 235,590 189,324 (236,483) - - 188,431
Northamptonshire 1,777 81,800 (55,000) - - 28,577
Nottinghamshire 5,912 10,000 - - - 15,912
Scotland 58,304 3,930 (17,434) - - 44,800
Staffordshire 25,048 250 - - - 25,298
Sussex 67,767 15,446 - - - 83,213
Teesside (Newcastle) 23,564 40,000 (42,486) - - 21,078
Tyne and Wear 7,770 13,000 - - - 20,770
Wales 88,653 3,108 (14,000) - - 77,761
West Midlands 6,125 34,500 (29,000) - - 11,625
Other geographical restricted funds 237,642 148,488 (338,349) - - 47,781
(less than £10,000 balances at 31stMarch 2024)
YoungDementia UK projects 107,814
132,392
(141,924)
(95,766)		 - 2,516
Total restricted funds 1,313,652 1,872,267 (1,932,406) (95,766) - 1,157,747

114 Dementia UK Annual Report 2024-25

Continued

Continued
At 1stApril Income and Expenditure Transfers Gains and At 31st March
2023 gains and losses losses 2024
£ £ £ £ £ £
Unrestricted funds:
Designated funds:
Admiral Nursing Development Programme 586,000 - - (586,000) - -
New Nurse Fund 1,508,045 - (151,720) (356,000) - 1,000,325
Investment in systems development 1,000,000 - (65,985) 400,000 - 1,334,015
Investment in charitable activities 800,000 - (658,901) - - 141,099
Clinical services digital development 1,000,000 - - (400,000) - 600,000
Investment in clinical activities - - - 942,000 - 942,000
Investment in fundraising - - - 850,000 - 850,000
Total designated funds
4,894,045
-
(876,606)
850,000		 -
4,867,439
General funds
8,857,285
20,669,607
(16,012,568)
(850,000)
(14,997)
12,649,327
Total unrestricted and designated funds
13,751,330
20,669,607
(16,889,174)
-
(14,997)
17,516,766
Total funds **15,064,982 ** **22,541,874 ** (18,821,580) (95,766) (14,997) 18,674,513

115

23. Purposes of restricted and designated funds

Restricted funds

Admiral Nursing projects are funded by donations specifically for the development and support of the services which Admiral Nurses provide.

The total restricted funds were raised by individuals, corporates, charitable trusts and fundraisers throughout the UK for the provision of services.

YoungDementia UK projects relate to funds transferred from YoungDementia UK when the charity became part of Dementia UK in November 2020; funding activities in line with YoungDementia UK’s charitable objects. In the prior year, at 31[st] March 2024, the Young Onset Dementia Advisors (YODA) Oxfordshire service and £95,766 of restricted funds relating to the service were transferred to Age UK Oxfordshire. At 31[st] March 2025 there were no remaining funds.

Designated funds

The charity holds the following designated funds at year end:

New Nurse Fund

The New Nurse Fund is used to fund Admiral Nurse services in host organisations to offer life-changing support to families facing dementia. The balance at 31[st] March 2025 was £688,582 (2024: £1,000,325).

Systems development work across the charity

Funds totalling £1,000,000 in 2022-23 and an additional £400,000 in 2023-24 were set aside for systems development work across the charity. Work began in 2023-24. An additional £690,000 in 2024-25 has been further designated for additional systems work expected. The balance at 31[st] March 2025 was £1,991,061 (2024: £1,334,015). The projects are anticipated to be completed by 2026.

Investment in charitable activities

Funds of £800,000 were set aside at 31[st] March 2023 for the development of policy, campaigns, public affairs and raising awareness of our charitable activities during 2023-24. The balance at 31[st ] March 2024 was £141,099, which was fully spent in 2024-25.

Clinical services digital development

This fund has been set aside for the development of our clinical services offering to include a digital service delivery for our beneficiaries. The balance at 31[st] March 2025 was £600,000 (2024: £600,000). There was no expenditure in 2024-25 due to other priorities. The expenditure is anticipated to commence in 2025-26 and to be completed towards the end of 2028.

Investment in clinical activities

Investment in clinical activities are funds set aside for investment to help develop and drive expansion of activity within our clinical services teams. The balance at 31[st] March 2025 was £816,781 (2024: £942,000). It is anticipated that this fund will be spent by 2027.

Investment in fundraising

An additional £850,000 has been designated to help with further diversifying our portfolio of fundraising given the charity is heavily reliant on voluntary donations. The balance at 31[st] March 2024 of £850,000 was fully utilised in 2024-25.

116 Dementia UK Annual Report 2024-25

24. Reconciliation of net income to net cash flow from operating activities

----- Start of picture text -----
2025 2024
£ £
Net income for the reporting period 6,634,082 3,705,297
(as per the statement of financial activities)
(Gains)/losses on revaluation and sale of investment assets (23,183) 14,997
Depreciation and amortisation charges 69,603 72,371
Dividends and interest from investments (874,139) (266,852)
Increase in debtors (675,062) (319,855)
Decrease in creditors (342,735) (1,544,899)
-
Funds transferred out to Age UK Oxfordshire (95,766)
Net cash provided by operating activities 4,788,566 1,565,293
----- End of picture text -----

25. Analysis of cash and cash equivalents

Cash in hand
Total cash and cash equivalents		 2025
2024
£
£
2,382,048
3,620,738
2,382,048
3,620,738

The charity held no notice deposits (less than three months) and did not have an overdraft facility in the year.

26. Operating lease commitments

26. Operating lease commitments
Periods:
Less than one year
One to five years		 Property
2025
2024
£
£
222,151
360,528
1,450,956
47,730		 Equipment
2025
2024
£
£
16,083
35,663
-
16,083
1,673,107
408,258		 16,083
51,746

27. Post-balance sheet events

Dementia UK has entered into a new rent lease agreement for its Head Office at One Aldgate, which commenced on 2[nd] April 2025 until 1[st] April 2035.

28. Legal status of the charity

The charity is a company limited by guarantee and has no share capital. The liability of each member in the event of winding up is limited to £1.

118 Dementia UK Annual Report 2024-25

Thank you

We are truly grateful to everyone who supported us in 2024-25, including our Volunteer Ambassadors. Because of you, we can offer more families a lifeline when they need it most. In particular, we would like to thank:

ADI Global Distribution Alliance Medical Amber River – East Anglia Paul and Aaron Anderson Anokhi Ladies Club Aon Foundation Apogee Corp The Art File Assura plc Baird Group Barbour Foundation Lord Harry Barnard Terence Basham Sarah Bennett Janette Burt Butt family through the Calleva Foundation Central Co-op Jason Chaffer David and Elizabeth Challen David Choules Maurice Clarke Sam Coffey The friends and family of Effy Constantinou RJ and AH Daniels Charitable Trust Deutsche Bank DPD Community Fund Earlsmead Charitable Trust East Sussex Fundraising Group Isabella Ellis Harry Ellison emap Croydon Office Everyone Active First Milk Harry Fitzalan Howard Garfield Weston Foundation Simon Gibson Charitable Trust The Grace Trust

Ruth Greene Haberdashers’ Aske’s School for Boys Harj Hayre Helianthus Charitable Trust Hodge Foundation JWS Maintenance Kent Limited Jane Keir King’s House School LABC The Kirby Laing Foundation Taras Lanchev Leeds Building Society Leicestershire Fundraising Group Alysia Liveras LOFA Macfarlanes LLP Manjinder Kang Sir James Knott Trust Judith Mann Marks & Spencer Masonic Charitable Foundation Doreen McCaughey The family of Ellen McIntyre Short Mold Golf Club Moondance Foundation The George A Moore Foundation Blake Morgan Morson Group Christine J Muskett Nationwide Building Society Mildred Naylor NatWest Group Next PLC The Openwork Foundation Vina Patel Pegasus Planning Group The P F Charitable Trust

Dementia UK Annual Report 2024-25 119

James Pickering Platform Housing Group The Porta Pia 2012 Foundation The Radfield Trust The Julia Rausing Trust Redrow Homes Limited The Reed Foundation MK Rose Charitable Trust Salisbury and South Wiltshire Golf Club The Basil Samuel Charitable Trust ShareGift The Charles Skey Charitable Trust Poppy Smith St Anne’s Old Links Golf Club Stewart Steele The Swire Charitable Trust Dame Cristina Taylor Gavin Thomas Oliver Thomas Kim Thorne Thurlow Nunn Group Tokio Marine HCC International UHY Hacker Young Upchurch River Valley Golf Club Van Elle Steven Wakeman Ruth Watson Grant Weldhen Westerleigh Group Zoe Wilson Wolseley UK Jean Woodberry Zurich Community Trust

We also thank all of the kind legators who generously left a gift in their Will, as well as our supporters who wish to remain anonymous.

Dementia UK is the specialist dementia nursing charity that is there for the whole family. Our nurses, known as Admiral Nurses, provide free, expert advice, support and understanding to anyone who needs it.

How we can support you

‘Dementia: what next?’ online sessions

If you are caring for someone with dementia or living with the condition yourself, you can register for our free online sessions, ‘Dementia: what next?’, which are hosted by Admiral Nurses.

Sign up at dementiauk.org/dementia-what-next

Admiral Nurse Dementia Helpline

To speak to an Admiral Nurse on our free, confidential Helpline, call 0800 888 6678 (Monday-Friday 9am-9pm, Saturday and Sunday 9am-5pm, every day except 25[th] December) or email helpline@dementiauk.org

Virtual clinic appointments

To book a phone or video appointment with an Admiral Nurse at a time to suit you, please visit dementiauk.org/book . Appointments are free, confidential and available Monday-Saturday.

dementiauk.org • 020 8036 5400 • info@dementiauk.org

Dementia UK is a registered charity in England and Wales (1039404) and Scotland (SC 047429). Company number: 02944156