Muddling along in the city: Framing the cityscape of dementia.

Abstract

There is growing interest in the social geography of dementia, with the development of dementia-friendly communities, localities and cities in the developed world. This paper considers the claims being made for cities to be risky spaces for people with dementia. It debates this through an analysis based on Bacchi's 'representation of problems' framework, evidencing this with policy documents and research findings. This reveals that the city is often seen as problematic for people with dementia, despite evidence to the contrary, and that local politicians are making claims for cities to be responsive dementia communities. The nature of local political ambitions is illustrated by strategies from London and from Manchester in the UK.