Romsey Dementia Action Group calls out for votes to ‘bag’ a share of bag charge fund

Test Valley Community Services, on behalf of Romsey Dementia Action Group, is bidding to bag a massive cash boost from the Tesco Bags of Help initiative.

Tesco teamed up with Groundwork to launch its community funding scheme, which sees grants of £4,000, £2,000 and £1,000 – all raised from the 5p bag levy – being awarded to local community projects.

Three groups in every Tesco region have been shortlisted to receive the cash award and shoppers are being invited to head along to Tesco stores to vote for who they think should take away the top grant.

Romsey Dementia Action Group is one of the groups on the shortlist.

Demfest is a free music and arts festival held to raise awareness of dementia in Romsey and Southern Hampshire. It is the only event of its kind in the country. Held in the grounds of Sir Harold Hillier Gardens, an internationally renowned gardens and aboretum, it is designed as an enjoyable day out for whole families with the aim of inspiring everyone, of any age, to be able to make a difference to people living with dementia.

 

It is organised by a voluntary coalition of local groups and individuals who have formed Romsey Dementia Action Group, whose aim is to make the town a dementia-friendly community.

 

A dementia-friendly community is a city, town or village where people with dementia are understood, respected and supported, and confident they can contribute to community life. In a dementia-friendly community, people will be aware of and understand dementia, and people with dementia will feel included and involved, and have choice and control over their day-to-day lives.”

 

Dementia is a growing disease, expected to affect nearly a million people by 2020. There is no cure at the moment, and so it is critical for the quality of life of those who live with dementia and those caring for them that every effort is made to enable them to retain their independence and ability to enjoy community life. Apart from the human dignity involved, it has been shown that remaining physically and socially active is important to slow down the progress of most dementias.

 

Ian Bradford, co-founder of Romsey Dementia Action Group and creative force behind Demfest said:

 

Demfest is becoming a regular part of the calendar for people in Southern Hampshire and we hope to make this year’s event even bigger and better than before. There’ll be something for everybody to enjoy as a day out, while at the same time inspiring people of all ages to make a difference to those living with dementia.

Voting is open in stores throughout May and June. Customers will cast their vote using a token given to them at the check-out in store each time they shop.

Tesco’s’ Bags of Help’ project has already delivered over £28.5 million to more than 4,000 projects up and down the UK. Tesco customers get the chance to vote for three different groups every time they shop. Every other month, when votes are collected, three groups in each of Tesco’s regions will be awarded funding.

Lindsey Crompton, Head of Community at Tesco, said:

 We are absolutely delighted to open the voting for May and June. There are some fantastic projects on the shortlists and we can’t wait to see them come to life in hundreds of communities.

Groundwork’s National Chief Executive, Graham Duxbury, said:

 We’ve been thrilled to see the diversity of projects that have applied for funding, ranging from outdoor classrooms, sports facilities, community gardens, play areas and everything in between.

We’re looking forward to learning the results of the customer vote and then supporting each group to bring their project to life.

Funding is available to community groups and charities looking to fund local projects that bring benefits to communities. Anyone can nominate a project and organisations can apply online. To find out more visit www.tesco.com/bagsofhelp


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