Dementia Friendly East Lothian began as a conversation between carers in 2014 which tapped into a shared vision for East Lothian as a place where people living with dementia and care-partners have places to go, people to see things to do.

We want every community to be dementia friendly; a welcome at every cafe and shop; a life with meaning and fulfilment.

Dementia Friendly East Lothian brings together people living with dementia, carers, families, communities and organisations to build understanding and work together to change lives.  We see every day the power of being connected and what we can achieve by working together.

Over the years our work has focussed round different ways of connecting:

• Friendship Groups - opportunities to be with people in the same boat for mutual support and fun, building confidence and becoming a force for change
• Dementia Friendly Communities - building understanding about dementia, challenging stigma and opening minds and doors through education and positive relationships
• Healthy Brains - sparking curiosity about brains, how they work, how they change and how we can look after them, promoting brain health for future generations
• Gatherings, Learning Events and Workshops - to share insight, enthusiasm and learning led by  lived experience  
• Developing new practice and approaches -  including the Musselburgh Meeting Centre, Happy Healthy Haddington, Brain Health and supporting community projects for the Musselburgh Library Community Garden to Strictly Seniors a dance project with Queen Margaret University and The Hollies. All are catalysts for change

The Musselburgh Meeting Centre has been our main project for four years. It opened in April 2023, after many years of hard work and lobbying from people living with dementia and carers, the Musselburgh Friendship Group and Musselburgh Area Partnership. It is now part of the East Lothian Dementia Strategy.

Funded by the East Lothian Health and Social Care Partnership the Meeting Centre enabled us to explore the potential of  an approach which offers  the opportunity to go further in taking forward our values and ambitions and make change happen.  The Centre, Members, team and supporters have created something really special which has tangibly changed many lives and demonstrated the potential of the Meeting Centre Approach and the 11 Essential Features. We have greatly benefited from the help and support from Meeting Centres Scotland and Meeting Centres UK.

 In April 2026, the Musselburgh Meeting Centre became part of an integrated Meeting and Day Centre funded by the East Lothian Health and Social Care Partnership. This is another innovation, taking the Meeting Centre approach into a new area. The Integrated Centre will be run by John Bellaney Day Centre SCIO. We are delighted that this integrated approach means that Musselburgh will once again have a Day Centre and the Musselburgh Meeting Centre will continue to thrive. Again the result of a lot of hard work from members, the Musselburgh Community and East Lothian Health and Social Care Partnership.

Our priority for the next stage is to share the learning and experience from the Meeting Centre and Development work across the county so that more people living with dementia and care partners benefit from approaches that we know work, so that more people can live and not just exist.

Thank you for your support. We hope to see you soon!

Sue