People across Falkirk district being urged to support the most vulnerable

Gemma Ritchie, adult support and protection lead with Falkirk Health and Social Care Partnership said: “Vulnerable individuals may be more exposed to the impact of the rising cost of living, so we are encouraging staff and communities to understand the signs of neglect, harm, fraud, or fire safety risks this winter.”

The partnership has been training ‘champions’ to help others to look out for signs of neglect and Gemma says everyone can play their part.

She said: “There are many ways people in the community can rally together to protect people who are more vulnerable to being harmed. Staff across Falkirk’s care at home and care home services have been training Adult Support and Protection Champions, who are able to help teams look out for signs of neglect and keep people safe within their local communities.”

In particular, the champions are urging families who have a loved one with dementia to take the time to fill out a form that could save lots of worry in the future.

The Herbert Protocol has been designed to save vital time and help police and other agencies quickly and safely locate missing people who have dementia. Families of a person with the condition are asked to download the form and then make sure it is kept in a safe place and up-to-date.

The completed form will contain a photograph along with details that will help police when they are dealing with a missing person enquiry. It collects information such as places of importance to them, often visited places, health issues and places they have been found in the past if reported missing.

The initiative is named after George Herbert, a war veteran who went missing and tragically died while trying to find his childhood home.

Being able to give the file of information to the police as soon as a missing person’s report is filed will save valuable time in the early stages of an enquiry.

Gemma said: “Our Champions have been encouraging staff and family of people at risk of going missing to complete the Herbert Protocol, helping to save a significant amount of time should an individual living with dementia go missing. The protocol provides peace of mind that police will have accurate and detailed information as soon as possible when needed.”

Police Scotland say that the Protocol, which was officially launched in September 2021, has been proving extremely useful and they are urging families and carers to fill the form out.

PC Yocksan Bell said: “The Herbert Protocol has a proven track record of helping to find people quickly and it also gives carers and next of kin peace of mind in the event they have to report someone missing to police.

“Finding a person with dementia who is missing quickly could save their life.”

To learn more, visit scotland.police.uk/herbertprotocol or the ActAgainstHarm.org.