Funding has been approved to establish an integrated dementia meeting centre and older people's day centre in the Musselburgh area.
Following previous pauses in its development, approval have been given to develop a Musselburgh, Wallyford and Whitecraig integrated Dementia Meeting Centre and Older People’s Day Centre.
The East Lothian Integration Joint’s Board’s (IJB) approval to fund this Musselburgh based facility will ensure day service provision for older people in each ward in the county, while delivering on its commitment of early intervention and prevention support as outlined in the IJB’s own strategic objectives as well as the dementia and carers strategies.
Musselburgh currently has a ‘Dementia Meeting Centre’ which operates from St Andrews Church. The Meeting Centre model of care focuses on providing local, community-based social, emotional and practical support for people living with dementia and their families. Essentially a social club, activities are led by the members for the members.
Musselburgh’s Dementia Meeting Centre has been operational for two years. While it has proven to be a fantastic resource, membership capacity is limited, and it is recognised that as member’s needs increase, attendees will begin to require the additional support that can be provided by day centres. The integration of the Dementia Meeting Centre and new Older Adult Day Centre will bring significant benefits and create a clear pathway of support for people living with dementia in the Musselburgh area.
A care needs analysis, and engagement with stakeholders has highlighted the clear need for an Older Adults Day Centre within the Musselburgh area, as there remains a high level of unmet need for older people with complex needs in the locality. Its creation will help reduce pressures on existing services, while allowing resources to be reallocated to those most in need.
Current East Lothian Day Centre models operate five days a week, supporting people with a variety of conditions, including people with more complex needs which (in some centres) can involve the delivery of personal care. Day services are an integral part of community support, and regularly prove to be a means of identifying signs of illness early, reducing frailty and assisting rehabilitation. They can reduce and/or delay the need for care home placements. In addition, day centres offer support to people up to the end of life and are considered a vital means of offering respite opportunities for unpaid carers.
Fiona Wilson, Chief Officer of ELHSCP comments, “We are so pleased that progress can get underway to establish enhanced community support for older people in the Musselburgh area. This integrated day centre provision with the Musselburgh Meeting Centre will mean a clearer pathway, better partnership working, better services for carers, community buy in, financial efficiencies and best of all, an enhanced care provision for residents living in the west of the county.”
With funding approval now in place, East Lothian Health and Social Care Partnership teams are working with partners to identify suitable premises from which to deliver the new integrated day centre and meeting centre provision. This involves engaging with community partners, including existing provider Dementia Friendly East Lothian to ensure continuity of provisions for members while developing the new integrated working models to come into effect after April 2026.
Councillor Shamin Akhtar, Cabinet spokesperson for health and social care adds, “There has been a gap in the provision of older people’s day services within the Musselburgh area for some time. I am therefore delighted that the Musselburgh area will be not only be gaining a dedicated day centre, but also an innovative model that incorporates a specific evidence-based approach for people living with dementia within the area.”