Time's running out for crucial charity service - but there is a way we can save it

I WAS invited to become a patron of the Beth Johnson Foundation (BJF) shortly following retirement.

- Joan Walley - Former Labour MP for Stoke-on-Trent North

It seemed like a worthy cause, something I could take on in parallel with other commitments and an opportunity to put into practice an art we all have to master - that of growing old gracefully.

The BJF was founded in memory of Beth Johnson, a member of a well-known ceramics family, with the intention to honour her life by helping older people as they age. Since 1972, the BJF has seen many changes, but its fundamental core has always involved helping older people to live a great later life.

My time as patron has provided a privileged insight into the predicament of those individuals and their families having to live with the terrible diagnosis of dementia. Which is why, in praising the work of all charities in our city,

I want to highlight how critically important the role of BJF's dementia advocacy support is, having supported our local community members to live with this condition for 27 years.

Like many charities, the BJF has been doing all it can to make ends meet. The wearying reliance on applications to diminishing, competing funding sources to keep the money coming in to pay for project delivery, is constantly challenging making survival increasingly difficult.