Launch of AIC-CLC Dementia Friendly Neighbourhoods

Singapore’s first ground-up research-based study on dementia-friendly neighbourhoods was launched on 2 December 2023 in the Yio Chu Kang constituency, by Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong and Mr Yip Hon Weng, Advisor to Yio Chu Kang Grassroots Organisations.

Driven by CLC, the Agency for Integrated Care (AIC), and the Singapore University of Technology and Design (SUTD), the Dementia-Friendly Neighbourhood Study set out to develop locally-validated design guidelines for creating neighbourhoods that are inclusive to people living with dementia in Singapore’s high-density, high-rise urban context. To do so, the DFN Study utilised an ethnographic and collaborative multi-stakeholder approach, which gathered first-hand input from academics, medical experts, government agencies, and the community. Based on the insights and design-thinking guidelines arising from the DFN Study, the research team then developed and implemented prototypes as a proof-of-concept in the pilot study site at Yio Chu Kang.

The research process, findings and prototypes have been documented in a research report titled “Creating a Dementia-Friendly Neighbourhood: A Yio Chu Kang Pilot Project”, which CLC cvhopes will offer guidance on the methodology for in-depth ethnographic engagement and co-creation.

Further, the “Dementia Friendly Neighbourhood Design Guide”, based on the DFN study as its foundation, consolidates and harmonises relevant dementia-friendly principles, guidelines and tools across agencies and academics. This Design Guide is intended to be a comprehensive resource that offers general guidance to built environment stakeholders on designing Dementia-Friendly Neighbourhoods.

This project also demonstrates CLC’s multi-stakeholder approach in action and features and was made possible with the support from community and agency partners such as Building and Construction Authority (BCA), Housing & Development Board (HDB), Land Transport Authority (LTA), MOH Office for Healthcare Transformation (MOHT), National Parks Board (NParks), Urban Redevelopment Authority (URA), Yio Chu Kang Grassroots Organisations, Ang Mo Kio Town Council, Thye Hwa Kwan (THK) Moral Charities, AWWA Ltd, and Tote Board. This collaborative effort to actualise the DFN Study will continue to be an integral component as we work towards developing other dementia-friendly neighbourhoods across Singapore to create a more inclusive home for all.

• To learn more about the DFN Study, read “Creating a Dementia-Friendly Neighbourhood: A Yio Chu Kang Pilot Project”

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• To learn how to create dementia-friendly neighbourhoods, download the “Dementia Friendly Neighbourhood Design Guide”

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