On 22 June 2026, the Health and Social Care Secretary published a letter to Baroness Casey, outlining progress on adult social care reform recommendations. The letter includes a section on the rising challenge of dementia, and a package of measures proposed by the Government to accelerate progress and improve the outlook for people affected by and at risk of dementia.
Responding to the letter, Prof Siddharthan Chandran, UK DRI CEO, said:
“People affected by dementia deserve real meaningful change and it’s positive to see the Government taking these steps to deliver impact for people affected across the UK.
“New funding for the AD-SMART clinical trial, which we are co-leading at the UK Dementia Research Institute, will allow us to offer more people the chance to participate in life-changing research, regardless of where they live. In parallel, the next phase of the Dementia Trials Accelerator, led by the UK DRI and Health Data Research UK, will boost rapid clinical trial recruitment, and the Government is taking steps across the whole research pipeline, from fundamental discovery science through to delivery, to pave the way for future breakthroughs to reach people quickly.
“All this is underpinned by the promise of a coherent strategic approach with a new dementia tsar to provide strong national leadership. The elements are here to enhance the UK’s position as a major player in dementia clinical trials and deliver progress faster for people living with dementia and their loved ones.”
“New funding for the AD-SMART clinical trial, which we are co-leading at the UK Dementia Research Institute, will allow us to offer more people the chance to participate in life-changing research, regardless of where they live. In parallel, the next phase of the Dementia Trials Accelerator, led by the UK DRI and Health Data Research UK, will boost rapid clinical trial recruitment, and the Government is taking steps across the whole research pipeline, from fundamental discovery science through to delivery, to pave the way for future breakthroughs to reach people quickly.
“All this is underpinned by the promise of a coherent strategic approach with a new dementia tsar to provide strong national leadership. The elements are here to enhance the UK’s position as a major player in dementia clinical trials and deliver progress faster for people living with dementia and their loved ones.”