Barbara Windsor’s husband named champion for Dementia Mission

The husband of the late Dame Barbara Windsor, Scott Mitchell, has been named the People’s Champion of the National Mission to Beat Dementia.

The appointment comes alongside £6 million in funding to boost clinical trials and innovation to detect and treat the disease early.

The ‘Dame Barbara Windsor Dementia Mission’ was launched in August 2022, in honour of Dame Barbara and the millions of other people and their loved ones who have had their lives ruined by dementia.

Secretary of State for Science Michelle Donelan said: “Dementia is an incredibly cruel disease, and as the leading cause of death in the UK nearly every family is affected by it in some way. Dame Barbara’s brave campaigning, supported by her husband Scott Mitchell, made that devastating impact powerfully clear to everyone.”

Dementia not only affects the sufferer, it can also have a devastating impact on their families.

As well as the emotional trauma, family members can be left with legal and practical difficulties such as enabling the sufferer to access their money and pay basic bills, or to make decisions on important financial matters. There may even be difficult choices about the kind of care the sufferer should receive.

Thousands of people protect themselves against such difficulties by drawing up Lasting Powers of Attorney (LPA). 

An LPA is a legal document that you can register when you are fit and healthy, authorising someone you choose to make decisions on your behalf if you are no longer able to do so yourself at some point in the future.  

The property and finance LPA allows you to appoint someone to look after your financial affairs, and the personal welfare LPA lets you grant an attorney authority over such matters as health care and the kind of treatment you receive.   

They are easy to set up with the help of an expert solicitor and once registered, they provide you with the peace of mind that comes from knowing that if anything untoward should happen to impair your decision-making, your interests will be looked after by someone you trust.  

Please contact us if you would like more information about Lasting Powers of Attorney.