A BUCKLEY therapist is hoping to use her skills to help people with dementia.

Recreational therapist Ema Keast has launched a crowdfunding page to kickstart The Alwyn Saville Dementia Foundation, which she started recently.

Mrs Keast, 45, is hoping that with the skills she has developed while working with residents who have dementia, she can change lives.

She explained: "I was a teacher for years and I have done some fostering. By chance two-and-a-half years ago I started a job in a nursing home as an activities coordinator.

"I started to research dementia and the different kinds that the people had and finding out what activities I could to to encourage these residents to speak and communicate."

Mrs Keast said as she got to know each of the residents, their families and their needs, she began to learn how she could tailor her help to each of them.

She aims to bring this philosophy to her work with The Alwyn Saville Foundation, which was named after a nursing home resident she has worked with over recent years.

"Alwyn came to me about two years ago," she explained.

"She came in for end of life care and her family were told by doctors that she did not have long to live.

"But I could see a flicker and I got to know her. She taught me so much and still does.

"Because by getting to know people who have dementia, I understood that people who have the same type don't have the same symptoms. Every one is different.

"If you talk to them for long enough, you get to understand their way of communicating.

"It could be a flicker of the eye or anything.

"By getting to know them I understand what they can do and what their limitations are. I build a rapport and a connection with them and I tailor their activities like a lesson plan. "To me it is a privilege - I want to help them keep their dignity."

Phil Saville, whose 92-year-old mum Alwyn lives in a nursing home on the Wirral, told the Leader he was delighted at the launch of the foundation.

He said: "Ema was in the home where my mum is and I have seen the results she has produced with her.

"When mum mum first went into a home we were told by consultants that she was showing signs of dying within weeks or months.

"What Ema has done for her in the last two years has been amazing, it has shown how much her methods work. "She is incredibly passionate about her work with dementia and we will support her as much as we can. "We were over them moon when she chose my mum to be part and parcel of it."

Mrs Keast is aiming to raise £25,000 in order to allow her to go out and deliver her sessions for free for a year.

To find out more about her work, visit www.emakeast.com/ and to make a donation to her fundraising page, visit: https://www.crowdfunder.co.uk/the-alwyn-saville-dementia-foundation