PUPILS at a Halstead school are now "dementia friends".

David Martins, customer relations manager at Colne View Care Home, in Halstead, led two interactive sessions for year five children at St Andrew's Primary School, during dementia awareness week.

As well as giving everyone information on the condition and how it can affect people, David also set out to make the pupils ‘Dementia Friends’.

An initiative from the Alzheimer’s Society, Dementia Friends is all about learning more about dementia and turning understanding into action – from telling others about Dementia Friends to visiting someone living with the condition to lend support.

St. Andrew’s Primary School was also presented with copies of David Walliams’ children’s book Grandpa’s Great Escape, which focuses on the adventures of a beloved grandpa who is living in a care home and is also living with dementia.

David Martins, customer relations manager at Colne View, said: "The pupils at St. Andrews Primary School were incredibly enthusiastic and eager to learn, and I’m sure the Grandpa’s Great Escape books will prompt further thought and discussion beyond the classroom."

Mary Veater, teacher at St. Andrew’s Primary School, added: "We were all thrilled to be involved in a project which is helping to make Halstead more dementia friendly, while also building on the link between the school and Colne View.

"The talks were very valuable – they have helped to make many of us far more aware of dementia and how it can affect people’s lives."