'I created device to help people with dementia stay safe'

A man whose father had dementia has created a device to help families with "their biggest fear" that loved ones with the condition go missing.

Having struggled to find support himself after his dad was diagnosed in 2007, Mark Aldred from Atherton, Wigan, set up the Good Deeds Trust charity.

It supports people living with dementia and Alzheimer's in the community including dementia cafes but he soon realised people needed more practical help as well as emotional support.

He designed the Guardian Angel - a small device which allows anyone to reach their emergency contact when scanned by a phone - so people with the condition "can live their lives" and help if they get lost or confused when out.

Aldred said it was a "frightening" time when his father was diagnosed and was "like the unknown".

"We asked people what they were worried about and people were saying about their loved ones going missing; that's the biggest fear," he said.

Aldred's device - which can be worn on the wrist, attached to a bag handle or zip, pinned to clothes or attached to keys - does not have any subscription charges.

"With these, once you've bought the device, the information that's in there is live all the time," he said.

"Each buddy contains a simple contactless chip, like the tech you use in your phone or bank card."

A quick tap gives instant access to the wearer's emergency information.

The trust said it was important to work with emergency services from the start.

Aldred said: "Most people if you find someone is confused you contact the police.

He said in his experience with his father, the safest place that the police can hold that person until they find out they're missing is in a cell.

But this can be incredibly stressful for people with dementia, so the device aims to address that and help reunite them with loved ones sooner.

Anne Tunicliffe, a volunteer with the trust, said when her husband went missing for eight hours one night, it was "very very scary".

"He was eventually found by some lads who called the police but it was in Lancashire and I had reported him missing with Greater Manchester Police," she said.

She said she wished the Guardian Angel was available then.

"It would have made a massive amount of difference," she said.

"I think he would have been found earlier so it would have taken all that anxiety away from me."

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