The Alzheimer’s Society has hit its target of signing up a million people to its Dementia Friends campaign over the last two years, the charity said last week.

The Dementia Friends programme, which received £2.4m funding from the Cabinet Office and the Department of Health, is run jointly with Public Health England. It was launched in February 2013 to tackle the stigma and lack of understanding faced by people with Alzheimer’s.  

The programme was intended to act as an answer to social exclusion. Nearly two thirds of people with dementia experience loneliness and almost half report having lost friends after their diagnosis, the charity said.

The charity created a symbol for the campaign, the forget-me-not flower, marketed the campaign in partnership with businesses including Marks & Spencer and Asda. It also recruited more than 100 MPs and worked with public institutions such as schools and police. It also recruited celebrities including singers Alesha Dixon and Pixie Lott, and TV presenter Eamonn Holmes, to help front a TV advert.

It also screened online video and held information sessions to allow people to learn about the illness and how they can help sufferers.

Jeremy Hughes, Chief Executive of Alzheimer's Society, said: “Dementia is our biggest health challenge and the British people are rising up to tackle it.”

The charity has also committed to spend £100m on research into care, prevention and a cure over the next 10 years.