Helping people with dementia stay steady, active and more independent

Lead Investigator: Dr Ríona Mc Ardle  

Institution: Newcastle University

Grant type: Dementia Research Leader Fellowship

Start date: July 2026

Duration: 60 months

Amount: £546,280.00

Summary sentence:

Dr Ríona Mc Ardle will work with people living with dementia, carers and professionals to design practical tools that help people manage walking and balance problems and stay independent for longer.

Short description (100 words):

Research led by Dr Ríona Mc Ardle will focus on helping people with dementia manage problems with walking and balance. These mobility changes can begin years before diagnosis and often get worse over time, increasing the risk of falls, injury and loss of independence.

The study will work closely with people living with dementia, carers and health and social care professionals to understand the biggest mobility challenges they face. Together, they will design practical support strategies and simple paper and digital tools to help people stay active, steady and confident for longer.

Long description (250 words):

Research led by Dr Ríona Mc Ardle aims to help people living with dementia manage changes in walking, balance and movement. These mobility problems can start many years before a dementia diagnosis and often become worse over time. They can increase the risk of falls, injury, disability and earlier loss of independence. However, issues with mobility are often overlooked, leaving many people without the support they need.

This project will work directly with people living with dementia, carers, and health and social care professionals to understand which mobility problems matter most in everyday life. The researchers will use interviews, group discussions and workshops to identify the biggest priorities and explore what kind of support would be most helpful for people with dementia after diagnosis.

The team will use this feedback to co-design practical support strategies and turn them into simple paper and digital tools. These might include easy to use resources, learning materials or other supportive tools that help people with dementia and carers better understand and manage changes to mobility. The prototypes will be tested and improved step by step with input from people affected by dementia, so the final tools are useful, inclusive and shaped by real lived experience.

A linked PhD project will also look at how to make digital tools more accessible for people from underserved communities and diverse backgrounds.

Overall, this fellowship aims to raise awareness of mobility problems in dementia and create practical support that helps people stay active, safe and independent for longer.