Dementia surveillance illustrates the disparities that exist across England in relation to the diagnosis of people with dementia and subsequent care they receive. It is aimed at informing national and local policy development, and for local commissioners to help in planning services around the needs of people with dementia. This document concentrates on Cheshire and Merseyside, one of the 42 Integrated Care Boards (ICB) compared to England national and North West regional data. Cheshire and Merseyside ICB has 9 sub locations (01F, 01J, 01T, 01V, 01X, 02E, 12F, 27D, and 99A), which are analysed in separate charts. The data runs from April 2025 to March 2026. Historical data can be accessed via the reports section of the Dementia Profile.
A timely and prompt formal diagnosis enables people living with dementia, their carers and healthcare staff to plan accordingly and work together to improve health and care outcomes. The 2 sections below present data on diagnosed prevalence and dementia diagnosis rates.
Prevalence describes the frequency of existing cases in a defined population at a given point in time. Measuring prevalence can be particularly helpful in assessing the need for preventive action and the planning of health services. Prevalence illustrated below is the number of people with a formal diagnosis of dementia on their primary care record, as a percentage of those registered with the primary care practices. The population it measures is aged 65 years and older.
The interactive chart in figure 1.1 shows the monthly prevalence for those with a formal diagnosis of dementia as trend lines for England, North West region and Cheshire and Merseyside ICB.
Figure 1.1
In March 2026, the diagnosed dementia prevalence in people aged 65 and over for Cheshire and Merseyside ICB was 4.3% of the 564,689 registered patients. It was not significantly different from the national England value of 4.3% and not statistically different from the North West regional value of 4.4%.
The interactive chart in figure 1.2 shows the monthly prevalence for those with a formal diagnosis of dementia as trend lines for the 9 Cheshire and Merseyside ICB sub locations (01F, 01J, 01T, 01V, 01X, 02E, 12F, 27D, and 99A).
Figure 1.2
In March 2026, the diagnosed dementia prevalence for the 9 Cheshire and Merseyside ICB sub locations varied between 3.7% and 5.2%. In relation to the Cheshire and Merseyside ICB value of 4.3%, 3 placed significantly above it (01V, 02E, and 27D) and 4 below (01F, 01J, 99A, and 01T).
The estimated dementia diagnosis rate (EDDR) measures the percentage of people in England estimated to have dementia, who have acquired a formal diagnosis of dementia which is recorded in their primary care notes. The EDDR is calculated as the number of people with a formal diagnosis of dementia divided by the number of people in the locality, aged 65 years and older, who are estimated to have dementia using the Cognitive & Function Assessment Study (CFAS II) prevalence rates. It is illustrated below as the rate of people diagnosed with dementia per 100 people expected to have dementia aged 65 and over.
The interactive chart in figure 2.1 shows the monthly value for EDDR as trend lines for England, North West region and Cheshire and Merseyside ICB.
Figure 2.1
In March 2026, there were 35,692 people aged 65 and over estimated to have dementia in Cheshire and Merseyside ICB. Of these, 24,390 have been formally diagnosed and added to the dementia register making the EDDR for the ICB 68.3%. This was not statistically different from the England value of 66.3% and not significantly different from the North West regional value of 70.3%. The ICB rate varied over the reporting time between 67.6% and 68.4%.
The interactive chart in figure 2.2 shows the monthly value for EDDR as trend lines for the 9 Cheshire and Merseyside ICB sub locations (01F, 01J, 01T, 01V, 01X, 02E, 12F, 27D, and 99A).
Figure 2.2
In March 2026, the EDDR for Cheshire and Merseyside ICB 9 sub locations varied between 59.7% and 75.2%. Compared to the 66.3% national value for England, 01V sub location placed above it, 01T placed below it and 7 showed no statistical difference (01F, 01J, 99A, 01X, 02E, 12F, and 27D). In relation to the Cheshire and Merseyside ICB value of 68.3%, none of the sub locations placed significantly above it and 1 was below (01T).
Ensuring dementia patients receive a high quality of care is one of the aspirations outlined in the Prime Minister’s challenge on dementia 2020. This section illustrates data on memory clinic referrals, antipsychotic prescribing and planning care for people of all ages with a record of dementia diagnosis.
The majority of formal diagnoses of dementia are provided by specialist clinicians at memory assessment services (memory clinics). To receive a referral to a memory clinic from primary care, an individual should be first assessed to eliminate any potential underlying causes that may be contributing to memory and welfare issues. Since March 2020, the COVID19 pandemic has affected the provision of the usual health services in England, limiting access to memory assessment services.
The interactive bar chart in figure 3.1 shows the referrals to memory clinics as a percentage of all individuals receiving an assessment for dementia since 1 April 2025 for England, North West region and Cheshire and Merseyside ICB. The memory clinic referrals data is cumulative and resets in April each year.
Figure 3.1
Between April 2025 and March 2026 there were 2,420 referrals to specialist memory assessment services in Cheshire and Merseyside. This was 12.7% of the dementia assessments provided in that ICB. This percentage was significantly below the national England value of 13.6% and above the North West regional value of 11%.
The interactive bar chart in figure 3.2 shows the referrals to memory clinics as a percentage of all individuals receiving an assessment for dementia since 1 April 2025 for the 9 Cheshire and Merseyside ICB sub locations (01F, 01J, 01T, 01V, 01X, 02E, 12F, 27D, and 99A). The memory clinic referrals data is cumulative and resets in April each year.
Figure 3.2
Between April 2025 and March 2026, the memory clinic referrals for the 9 Cheshire and Merseyside ICB sub locations varied between 7.8% and 27.3%. In relation to the Cheshire and Merseyside ICB value of 12.7%, 5 placed significantly above it (01F, 01J, 01V, 01X, and 12F) and 3 below (99A, 01T, and 02E).
People with dementia may develop behavioural and psychological symptoms (BPSD) including agitation, aggression, distress, and psychosis. They are often prescribed antipsychotic medication. The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) guidance recommends prescription of antipsychotics should be undertaken with serious consideration.
The interactive chart in figure 4.1 shows the number of people with dementia receiving a prescription for antipsychotic medication in the preceding 6 week period, as a percentage of all individuals with a formal diagnosis of dementia. It displays the England, North West region and Cheshire and Merseyside ICB trend lines.
Figure 4.1
In March 2026, 11% of people with a diagnosis of dementia also received a prescription for antipsychotic medication in the preceding 6 week period in Cheshire and Merseyside ICB. The ICB levels of antipsychotic prescribing were significantly above the England value of 8.7% and above the North West regional value of 8.2%.
The interactive chart in figure 4.2 shows the number of people with dementia receiving a prescription for antipsychotic medication in the preceding 6 week period, as a percentage of all individuals with a formal diagnosis of dementia. It displays the 9 Cheshire and Merseyside ICB sub locations (01F, 01J, 01T, 01V, 01X, 02E, 12F, 27D, and 99A) trend lines.
Figure 4.2
In March 2026, the antipsychotic prescribing for the 9 Cheshire and Merseyside ICB sub locations varied between 7.3% and 14.4%. In relation to the Cheshire and Merseyside ICB value of 11%, 3 placed significantly above it (99A, 02E, and 12F) and 3 below (01F, 01X, and 27D).
Following a diagnosis of dementia, a care plan should be put in place as soon as possible. This plan should set out the care needed by the person and those caring for them and it should be reviewed regularly. If a care plan is not current, there could be unmet needs for the individual leading to the deterioration of their health and wellbeing. The dementia care pathway full implementation guidance recommends that the care plan should be reviewed within at least 12 months of being agreed, then reviewed every 12 months in accordance with changes in the person’s needs. There will be geographical differences in what team provides care plans and reviews as different local services develop care plans in different parts of the country.
The interactive bar chart in figure 5.1 shows the number of people with dementia who have received a care plan or care plan review in the preceding 12 month period as a percentage of all individuals with a formal diagnosis of dementia. This data is cumulative and the monthly values can be used as a performance measure to indicate progress in the given area but they are not suitable for comparisons over time. Annual trends can be seen in Dementia Profile by comparing data collected at the end of March each year.
Figure 5.1
In March 2026, there were 25,138 people with a dementia diagnosis in Cheshire and Merseyside ICB. Of these, 19,124 had a care plan or care plan review recorded in the past 12 months (76.1%). This was not statistically different from the England value of 75.7% and below the North West regional value of 78.2%.
The interactive bar chart in figure 5.2 shows the number of people with dementia who have received a care plan or care plan review in the preceding 12 month period as a percentage of all individuals with a formal diagnosis of dementia for the 9 Cheshire and Merseyside ICB sub locations (01F, 01J, 01T, 01V, 01X, 02E, 12F, 27D, and 99A).
Figure 5.2
In March 2026, the percentage of people with a diagnosis of dementia who also received a care plan or a care plan review across the 9 Cheshire and Merseyside ICB sub locations varied between 71.3% and 78.3%. In relation to the Cheshire and Merseyside ICB value of 76.1%, one sub location placed significantly above it (99A) and 3 below (01F, 01X, and 02E).
This document was created by the National Dementia Intelligence team (NDI), part of Clinical Epidemiology in the Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC) on 30 April 2026. Data points represent extracts at the last day of the month. Data used in this publication is available via the Surveillance Factsheet part of the Dementia Profile. Underlying data, caveats and metadata are provided by the NHS. Enquiries: ndi@dhsc.gov.uk
This document is using Primary Care Dementia Data, which replaced the Recorded Dementia Diagnosis data in October 2022. Geography changes are detailed by the data provider.
In the new Primary Care Dementia Data the primary care practice coverage was relatively low to start with, while practices were signing up to the new data collection system. That number has recovered to over 95% in March 2023 but still had incomplete data due to one of the Integrated Care Boards not submitting any data at all. From April 2023 all the ICB submit data and practice coverage is above 98%, which is why that date is the first reported in the new version of this factsheet. March data is treated as an end of year point and the factsheets for previous years up to March can be downloaded separately while latest factsheet will always aim to start in April of the current financial year, once enough data points are available. The latest coverage in March 2026 is 98.7%.
Statistical data comparisons have been made using 95% confidence intervals. If the area’s confidence interval contains the comparator value of the higher geography, the values for both areas are not significantly statistically different from each other. These values are described as ‘not different’ in the factsheet. If the whole confidence interval is above the comparator value, the area’s value is significantly statistically higher than the comparator. These values are described as ‘higher’ or ‘above’. If the whole confidence interval is below the comparator value, the area’s value is significantly statistically lower than the comparator. These values are described as ‘below’ or ‘lower’.