Sahara is the South Asian Dementia Support Service within Alzheimer’s Society and was set up in March 2023 to providing culturally responsive and person-centred support to South Asian individuals and families affected by dementia across all ten boroughs of Greater Manchester.
Sahara was established to address the inequalities experienced by underserved communities. Sahara works to break down barriers surrounding dementia by increasing awareness, reducing stigma, and improving access to timely support. Through trusted relationships and meaningful community engagement, the team empowers individuals and families to understand dementia, access services, and live well following a diagnosis.
The service delivers one-to-one support, memory cafés, community education, professional culturally competency training, and dementia awareness sessions in a wide range of settings, including places of worship, schools, healthcare organisations, community groups, and voluntary sector partners. Sahara also plays a leading role in promoting inclusive dementia research, ensuring that South Asian communities have equitable opportunities to contribute to and benefit from research.
At the heart of Sahara is a commitment to cultural understanding, compassion, and partnership. By listening to communities and working alongside them, Sahara continues to influence systems, improve accessibility, and create lasting change so that every person affected by dementia feels seen, heard, and supported.
Everything you have read describes what Sahara is today. But our story began very differently.
In 2023, we were given just one year to achieve what many believed was impossible. Three years later, not only are we still here, but we are stronger than ever, continuing to grow in ways we could only have dreamed of.
When we started, dementia and the South Asian community were rarely spoken about in the same sentence. There was little or no information available in South Asian languages, very limited culturally appropriate support, and in many communities, there was no understanding of what dementia was, how it affected people, or how families could live well with it.
We started with nothing more than our laptops, a pen, a notebook, and an unwavering belief that our communities deserved better.
We researched everything that already existed, hoping to build upon it. What we found was that, in many areas, there was very little to build from. So, instead of waiting for change, we became the change.
We stepped into our communities. We knocked on doors. We sat in community centres, mosques, temples, GP surgeries, cafés, and places where people naturally gathered. We listened before we spoke. We introduced ourselves, started conversations that many had never had before, and slowly began breaking down generations of stigma, fear, and misunderstanding.
It wasn’t easy. We were often told that similar work had been attempted before and that it had never lasted. There were moments of doubt, barriers we hadn’t anticipated, and doors that didn’t always open.
But we carried something no strategy, funding bid, or project plan could ever replicate.
We carried lived experience.
Each member of our team had loved someone living with dementia or had experienced its impact personally. That lived experience became our greatest strength. It gave us authenticity, empathy, and determination. We shared our own stories, and in doing so, others found the courage to share theirs. Those stories became the bridge that connected us to our communities.
Today, in 2026, Sahara supports hundreds of individuals and families every year. Our memory cafés are thriving, providing safe spaces where people living with dementia and those who care for them can laugh, connect, and know they are not alone.
Yet, when we reflect on everything we have achieved, our greatest success cannot be measured by referral numbers, events, or cafés.
It is trust.
Trust from families who invite us into their homes during some of the most difficult moments of their lives.
Trust from communities who now openly talk about dementia where once there was silence.
Trust from partners who stand alongside us because they believe in what we do.
Being trusted to walk beside someone living with dementia is a privilege we never take for granted.
Sahara was never just about delivering a service. It was about creating a movement built on compassion, culture, courage, and hope. We set out to change the conversation around dementia in South Asian communities, but along the way, our communities changed us too.
Our journey is far from over. There are still families waiting to be reached, stories waiting to be heard, and barriers waiting to be broken. As long as those barriers exist, Sahara will continue to stand beside our communities, ensuring that no one faces dementia alone, and that every family knows they have somewhere to turn.
