At least 1,400 vulnerable people will spend Christmas on a hospital ward – well enough to go home, but trapped because of a social care system starved of funding – an Alzheimer’s Society investigation has revealed.

Alzheimer’s Society today warned a desperate lack of available homecare and care homes is ‘turning wards into waiting rooms’, after its investigation revealed people with dementia are being delayed up to ten times as long as those without the condition.

There is no cure for dementia, or drugs that can slow its progression, so it’s social care, rather than the NHS, that hundreds of thousands of people with dementia in the UK rely on every day. But with a £2bn social care funding shortfall, there is not enough support for people with dementia.

The investigation, which analysed data from hospital-led audits (1), found that last year people with dementia spent 500,000 extra days in hospital, despite being well enough to go home, at a cost to the NHS of over £170 million. Limited data is collected on dementia care in hospitals, and only two thirds of people with dementia have a diagnosis (2), so this is likely to be a conservative estimate of the true picture.

Prolonged stays in hospital have life-changing consequences for people with dementia – many become too frail to be discharged to their own home, with some sadly dying before they are discharged.

Julie Evans from Great Barr, Birmingham, said: “My father was admitted to hospital due to a water infection which seriously affected his confusion. Up until that time he had lived in his home with help and support from family. Whilst in hospital his dementia seemed to worsen dramatically and it was decided that he would not be able to return home and would require a care home. We had to wait for him to be allocated for assessment of his needs. We waited 4 weeks for an assessment place. He was sent to a home where I saw no stimulation or interaction, staff bought food and drink and kept guard by the doors.  My dad was there for 1 week before he suffered a fall which saw him break his hip. He was admitted to hospital where he later died. In my experience of seeing both of my parents with dementia needing hospital and then care home, I can only say that neither was acceptable. The care home should have been available as soon as dad was passed fit to leave not after a further 4 weeks.

“I still cry every day because of what happened to my dad and because I had to let him go through the system, the guilt I feel will stay with me for the rest of my life. I feel very strongly about this as both my parents suffered very degrading ends to lives that had been spent as loving, caring, valuable members of society.”

Nurses on the frontline are fearful of the safety of people with dementia while they’re stuck in hospital for lengthy periods. As part of its investigation, Alzheimer’s Society carried out a survey in partnership with the Royal College of Nursing (3) which found 1 in 10 nurses surveyed have seen people with dementia waiting in hospital for over a year.

One of the nurses surveyed described hospital as ‘one of the most confusing and upsetting environments for a patient with dementia’. Another expressed concern that people with dementia ‘are much more likely to harm themselves in acute settings where they are not managed appropriately or able to have the attention they deserve to maintain their safety’.

Maria Parkes, Services Manager in Birmingham, at Alzheimer’s Society, said: “With such scarce social care funding, wards are being turned into waiting rooms, and safety is being jeopardised.

“From the woman who spent two months on a bed in a corridor because there were no available care home places, to the man who died after months of waiting left him debilitated by hospital-acquired infections, people with dementia are repeatedly falling victim to a system that cannot meet their needs.

“One million people will have dementia by 2021, yet local authorities’ social care budgets are woefully inadequate, and no new money has been promised in the budget to cope with increasing demand.

“Government attention must be focussed on social care, and pounds put behind their promises, to alleviate the pressure on our NHS hospitals, and the suffering of people with dementia on its wards.”

Dawne Garrett, Royal College of Nursing Professional Lead for the Care of Older People and Dementia, said: “Nursing staff know better than anyone how often patients with dementia are stranded in hospital when they could be discharged, if only they had more social support.  Hospital is not the best place for people living with dementia, where they are at risk of falling or contracting an infection.

“The College was very concerned to see no extra resources announced for social care in last month’s Budget, and backs Alzheimer’s Society’s call for increased funding for local authorities so that they can give more support to people leaving hospital”.

The RSPCA’s Birmingham Animal Centre in Frankley Green became isolated when snow started to fall on Friday last week, after the country lanes leading towards it became dangerous to drive on.

But it didn’t deter the dedicated staff, many of who decided to walk on the ice and snow to get to work, with some walking as far as two miles in the freezing cold wind and six-inch snow.

Some staff even stayed overnight at the site, despite being unprepared and not bringing anything with them - purely to ensure that the 39 dogs and 80 cats at the centre could still be looked after.

Deborah Caffull, manager of the centre, said: “With the adverse snow and ice from Friday until Thursday, my team went above and beyond to make sure animals at the centre were cared for.

“The country roads that lead to the centre were dangerous to drive on, making access very limiting for staff to get to work. But I had staff walk into work covering at least two miles, and some staff stayed unprepared on site so they could be available to attend work the next day.

“We had staff coming in early to make the centre as safe as possible to work in and exercise the dogs, provide daily enrichment and make sure they all had clean and warm bedding for the cold nights.

“Even with all the extra work. I still saw smiles on all their faces - and it was obvious the dogs appreciated it too!

“Overall there was minimal impact on the animal's daily routine and that was all down to the team and there pure dedication to make sure the work was carried out.

“This just goes to show how truly passionate RSPCA staff are about animal welfare.”

Many of the 88 existing constellations officially recognised by the International Astronomical Union are based on the zodiac and figures from ancient Greek and Roman mythology, but a new study has found these aren’t necessarily proving successful in enticing children today to look up to the stars - with 29% admitting they wouldn’t actually be able to recognise a single classical constellation. 

In a bid to get kids to take up more of an active interest in the cosmos, The Big Bang Fair has worked with University of Birmingham to create a brand-new set of constellations based on inspirational figures of the modern day that young people will want to look up to - in every sense of the term.

The new project, entitled ‘Look Up To Stars’, centres on eight new constellations for the modern day – each one representing famous men and women that are inspiring to children from the worlds of sport, entertainment, science and activism – with a view to encouraging more young people to take up an interest in the universe.

In a study commissioned by The Big Bang Fair to mark the launch of the project, 72% of the 7-19 year-olds that were polled said they have never looked up at the night sky to find a constellation, while 29% admitted they wouldn’t be able to recognise a single classical constellation by name if shown them.

So what are some of the new constellations that astronomy experts at University at Birmingham have created?

New creations from researchers include Harry Potter’s glasses to represent JK Rowling, a tennis racket for Serena Williams, a space-craft for Tim Peake, a blue whale for Sir David Attenborough and a book in honour of Malala Yousafzai.

Sir Mo Farah meanwhile has been immortalised in the form of an ‘M’ shape constellation after his renowned ‘Mobot’ celebration, with Usain Bolt is also celebrated through a pattern of stars that resembles his own celebratory lightning-bolt stance.

The new constellations are the work of experts at the University of Birmingham’s Astronomy Society. The process of developing the new constellations involved a careful analysis of star maps for different regions of the sky by researchers.

Emma Willett, who led the University of Birmingham research team, commented: “It was an honour to work alongside The Big Bang Fair to develop a new set of constellations for the modern day to encourage children today to look up to the stars. We really hope these new creations will help people of all ages develop their interest in space and astronomy, working to inspire the next generation of astronomers to take an interest in the field.”

Beth Elgood, Director of Communications at EngineeringUK, who organise The Big Bang Fair, said: “Stargazing is a great way to spark young people's interest in the universe and inspire them to find out more. Inspiration is at the heart of The Big Bang Fair, where young visitors, their teachers and parents have the chance to get hands-on with engaging STEM activities, workshops and shows and discover where science and maths could take them in the future.”

With just weeks to go until Christmas, Birmingham’s National Sea Life Centre is reminding people about the importance of responsible exotic pet ownership.

Often readily available in high street pet shops and considered the perfect festive gift by unassuming owners, terrapin turtles can be too challenging to take care of without sufficiently detailed research going into the challenges owning one requires.

James McElroy, Lead Reptile Keeper at the aquarium, said: “In the new year we are often inundated with calls about re-homing unwanted terrapins and turtles.

“Unfortunately it is becoming a more frequent occurrence at this time of year as animals are becoming more readily bought as Christmas gifts. Often people might not fully understand the challenges of looking after an exotic pet, and they buy young animals thinking they are cute and small, without considering the fact that these animals will often live for over 30 years, and require specialist tanks and equipment.”

In the early 1990s turtles became popular pets for fans of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle cartoon television series, which led to hundreds of boating lakes, canals and waterways in towns and cities becoming populated with terrapins and small turtles. As a result of the pet-trade, red-eared-slider turtles in particular are now considered to be one of the world's 100 most invasive species.

The specialist care for turtles can be underestimated prior to purchase, including the sheer size of the creatures. As baby turtles, the size of just a 50p coin, grow to mature adults the size of dinner plates, they develop more sophisticated dietary and accommodation needs, and it is at this point that they are more likely to become abandoned by owners unable to cope.

The National Sea Life Centre in Birmingham homes four species of terrapin, more than 50% of which were donated by the public as unwanted pets. Now full to capacity, the animal care team is urging people to give careful consideration before purchasing an exotic pet.

Business leaders in Birmingham have called on the government to take control of the economy by investing in skills and infrastructure, rather the Bank of England’s “balancing act”.

Greater Birmingham Chambers of Commerce (GBCC) said moving away from a reliance on consumer spending was more likely to create a path to prosperity.

Paul Faulkner (pictured), chief executive of Greater Birmingham Chambers of Commerce (GBCC), was speaking after the announcement that inflation rose from 3 per cent to 3.1 per cent in November, the highest figure in nearly six years, as the squeeze on households continued.

Mr Faulkner said: “Inflation levels crept above the 3 per cent mark for the first time in almost six years as we saw a notable rise in oil prices throughout November – mainly as a by-product of the lower value of the pound.

“Markedly, UK earnings are only rising by around 2 per cent which means households are still feeling the squeeze in the run up to Christmas.

“In his letter to the Chancellor, Mr Carney will no doubt stress that inflation is now close to its peak – however, a key trend we saw in our latest Quarterly Business Report was that local firms are still facing pressures to raise prices which in turn, could produce upward inflationary pressures and continue to have a knock on effect on consumer output.

“Moving away from a reliance on consumer spending and actually investing in skills and infrastructure is more likely to create a path to prosperity than relying on the Bank of England to maintain its balancing act of keeping a lid on inflation whilst also getting households to spend more of their hard earned cash.

“We will be discussing this topic and others at the official launch of the report  which takes place on Monday, January 16, at Birmingham City University.”

An innovative campaign enabling those who feel vulnerable in pubs and clubs to discreetly approach staff and get help is being launched in the City of Wolverhampton.

The Ask for Angela initiative, which will be operating at a number of pubs and clubs in the city centre, aims to reduce sexual violence and vulnerability by providing customers with a phrase they can use if they find themselves in an unsafe situation.

It encourages people to go to the bar and "Ask for Angela", which will alert staff to their cry for help and mean they can take action to defuse the situation. They will take the individual to one side or to a safer location away from the person causing the problem so that they can speak in confidence to staff about the situation and any help they may need.

Staff are encouraged to take action as appropriate, perhaps calling a taxi for the individual, contacting their friends or family or requesting that the person causing the distress – either through their actions, words or behaviour – leaves the venue.

Twelve pubs in Wolverhampton have already signed up for the scheme, launched by the City of Wolverhampton Council, West Midlands Police and Wolverhampton Pubwatch, including the Plough and Harrow, Lych Gate Tavern, Chicago Rock Cafe, Wheatsheaf, Old Still, Yates Wolverhampton, Hogshead, Slaters, Bohemian, Grain Store, Dog and Doublet and The Royal London.

Councillor Paul Sweet, the City of Wolverhampton Council's Cabinet Member for Public Health and Wellbeing, said: "We want people to have a great time and feel safe and comfortable when they are out and about in our City's pubs and clubs, and this is a simple yet effective scheme which empowers them to seek help if they are feeling at all vulnerable by raising their concerns with staff.

"People might find themselves in the company of someone who is not who they seemed, and may want to get away from them safely and without any fuss. By going to the bar and asking for 'Angela', staff will be able to make sure this happens and help prevent the situation from becoming more serious.

"I would like to thank the pubs and clubs which are already part of the Ask for Angela scheme, and would encourage others to sign up so that people who find themselves in unsafe situations know they can get help in the event they need it.

“It is particularly appropriate that we are launching Ask for Angela during the Orange Wolverhampton campaign in support of the United Nations’ 16 days of activism to end violence against women and girls, as this is an excellent tool to help tackle gender-based violence.”

Donna Boden, General Manager at Yates Wolverhampton and Chair of Wolverhampton Pubwatch, said: “Ask for Angela is a great idea which will support young females who are feeling vulnerable. It’s great to see so many local businesses and networks coming together to a support such a fantastic scheme.”

Wolverhampton is only the third area in the country to offer the service, which was originally devised by Lincolnshire County Council.