An East Renfrewshire project has secured funding for initiatives that support people living with dementia and their caretakers.

Mearns Kirk Helping Hands, one of the 16 projects backed by Age Scotland’s About Dementia ‘Encouraging and Supporting Grassroots Activity Fund’, has been awarded £16,940.

Vicky Atwood, project manager at Mearns Kirk Helping Hands, said: "We are thrilled to be able to carry on providing our Monday Meet Ups, which have come to be such a treasured part of our weekly programme at Mearns Kirk Helping Hands.

"We are really excited about developing our Dementia Activity Companion service, which will involve recruiting and supporting volunteers who can provide one-to-one transport for people living with dementia to our groups and activities.

"We know that dementia support is going to continue to be in high demand in our community over the coming years and as a community-led organisation, we are so grateful for the support of Age Scotland in helping us to grow our responses."

Community groups that Age Scotland was unable to fund last year have been awarded a total of £262,837 throughout Scotland.

These grants have been enabled by the Scottish Government that aims to address gaps in support for people living with dementia and unpaid carriers, break down barriers to support, and empower people to live well within their communities.

Katherine Crawford, chief executive office at Age Scotland, said: “Following the high demand for our previous round of funding, we are thrilled to be able to provide additional financial support to the groups and communities who narrowly missed out last time.

"It’s great that we can support such a diverse range of projects supporting people in towns, cities, islands and rural areas throughout Scotland.

"This is the third round of funding, which to date totals over half a million pounds, and it is particularly exciting as we were able to quickly distribute this substantial financial support to successful applicants; allowing communities to address gaps in support for people living with dementia, their carers and empowering people to live well within their communities."