Alison Ward Author

Dr Hilda Hayo became Chief Admiral Nurse & CEO for Dementia UK in 2013. As a dual registered nurse, she has held senior positions in clinical services, hospital management and higher education. Alison Ward is an experienced health and wellbeing researcher, with a particular expertise in creativity and dementia. Alison gained a degree in Drama and Psychology from the University of Leicester, which led to her early career working for various theatre companies across the UK. Alison has since gained her MSc in Psychology from the Open University and is studying for her PhD at the University of Northampton, exploring the use of photography with people with dementia. Alison was awarded a Winston Churchill Travelling Fellowship in 2015 to visit Denmark and learn how the Danish use creative engagement to support people living with dementia. Alison lives in Northamptonshire and runs TimeSlips storytelling sessions in a local dementia ward and is founding member of the Forget Me Nots social group for people with dementia. Professor Jacqueline Parkes is an experienced registered mental health nurse practitioner, who has worked clinically across community, acute in-patient, rehabilitation, secure services, learning disability, and elderly mental health care settings. She is also a senior academic who has designed and delivered a broad range of educational nursing, mental health, and research programmes from foundation degree through to Professional Doctorates, including an MSc in Mental Health. Jackie's subject specialisms are mental health and nursing research, with a particular focus on developing and implementing person-centered care pathways and strong research interests in young onset dementia, early intervention, and social support, service evaluation and review through action research, project management, and psychological aspects of health and well-being.