TO BE PUBLISHED November 2025
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This conference will focus on priorities for improving dementia diagnosis, care and research in England, following the 2025 Spending Review and in the context of the 10-Year Health Plan.
Creating a Modern Service Framework & improving standards
Stakeholders and policymakers will assess priorities for creating a Modern Service Framework for dementia and frailty - as set out in the 10-Year Health Plan - to identify and set standards for best-evidenced interventions and define long-term outcome goals, as well as strategies for improving service integration and addressing variation in diagnosis rates.
Delegates will discuss what will be needed from the new framework to help tackle key issues in dementia care, such as setting clear national standards for tests and treatments and identifying gaps in the healthcare pathway. Discussion will consider how to enable more effective coordination between local services and explore how ICSs and local systems are responding to new expectations.
Neighbourhood services, & social care
Implications of the shift towards neighbourhood health services will be examined, along with what will be needed to support the development of successful multidisciplinary teams. A focus is expected on the future direction of social care, with stakeholders emphasising the importance of supporting the sector in order for proposals in the 10-Year Health Plan to be achieved.
Delegates will consider next steps for long-term policy direction and efforts to build cross-party consensus on sustainable funding, informed by the recently launched Casey Commission.
Discussion will also centre on the development of partnerships with the third sector, including how the Government’s plan for automatic referral of patients with dementia to specialist charities should be delivered in practice.
Innovation, research, diagnosis & access
Delegates will examine the dementia research agenda as an area of focus within the Government’s Life Sciences Sector Plan, including delivery of the Government’s Dementia Goals programme, as well as wider aims for positioning the UK as a leader in genomics-enabled prevention and diagnostics. Proposals to shift investment in health R&D towards primary and secondary prevention will be assessed, with a focus on expanding patient access and improving national diagnostic capability.
Further sessions will assess how local systems are responding to variation in detection rates across regions and demographic groups, considering priorities for improving diagnostic pathways.
Discussion will also look at the preparedness of the health system to deliver disease-modifying treatments, and what is needed to support earlier diagnosis and safe, effective implementation. With a focus in the Life Sciences Sector Plan on improving uptake of innovation, delegates will assess strategic next steps for clinical research infrastructure, data use, and regulatory safeguards.
Funding, policy & workforce priorities
Further sessions assess the Government’s funding and policy commitments - including measures in the 2025 Spending Review - on diagnostic infrastructure, social care, and research. Delegates will consider the scope and scale of proposals in relation to challenges being faced, as well as priorities and practicalities. Areas for discussion will include implementation of workforce expansion, development of a single patient record, and new cost-efficiency mandates.
Additional areas for discussion
- local coordination & pathway improvements: role of ICSs and local systems in responding to new expectations - addressing variation in diagnosis rates - enabling stronger service integration
- defining quality in care provision: what constitutes good dementia care as the CQC develops new cross-sector statutory guidance
- neighbourhood & multidisciplinary care models: how neighbourhood services can support access closer to home - what is needed to develop and sustain effective multidisciplinary teams
- social care & cross-sector alignment: coordination with health services - support for unpaid carers - implications of the Casey Commission for long-term policy direction and consensus on sustainable funding
- third-sector partnerships & care tools: implementing automatic referrals to charities - developing functionality of the proposed My Carer tool through the NHS App to support coordination and care management
- diagnostic innovation & early detection: the Health Data Research Service - adoption of blood-based biomarkers, portable brain scanners, AI-powered tools, and improved data access
- clinical trials & regulatory processes: streamlining clinical trials - expanding real-world evidence - achieving appropriate regulatory safety for people with cognitive impairment
- system readiness & infrastructure for new therapies: workforce development - diagnostic capacity - implications for equitable access - commissioning processes to support infusion-based treatments such as Lecanemab and Donanemab
- workforce development & skills frameworks: priorities for a revised NHS Long-Term Workforce Plan - proposals for a national qualification in complex dementia care - delivering consistency in mandatory training across sectors
All delegates will be able to contribute to the output of the conference, which will be shared with parliamentary, ministerial, departmental and regulatory offices, and more widely. This includes the full proceedings and additional articles submitted by delegates.
