THE Forest of Dean Dementia Action Alliance is calling on local crafters to create Forget Me Not book markers, ahead of May’s Dementia Awareness Week.

The week begins Monday, May 18 at Beechenhurst, and the group is holding memory walks, guided walks, a fun run, stalls and more to help raise awareness of dementia. As part of the week, Dementia Action Alliance hopes to provide every participant with a Forget Me Not book marker.

To make this possible, the group is looking to the local crafting community for help. Once the book markers are made, they can be dropped off at Coleford, Cinderford, Lydney or Newent Libraries, ready for May’s event.

A Forest of Dean Dementia Action Alliance spokesperson said: “Back in October, we contacted a number of local crafters and put it on our Facebook page.

“The outpouring of support from our initial conversations has been truly amazing, and we are in awe of the incredible vision of our local crafters. From the initial request for Forget Me Not book markers, we have received donations of beautiful Fidget Quilts and Forget Me Not hair clips. The community has really come together. Thank you!”

In October 2025, the group launched a new project called Crafted Together, which enables anyone who can crochet or knit to use their skills to make something that can help other people in the community.

A spokesperson added: “It helps to raise awareness of dementia by creating conversations and connections. The output is that people make lovely items that can be given out in communities to raise wider awareness and give someone something really nice, useful and homemade with love.”

The Forest community has previously proven its support of the work Dementia Action Alliance does. In 2015, a Twiddlemuff challenge was held, and more than 1,000 twiddlemuffs were made by local people, raising awareness and providing something that helped vulnerable people. These items are still being made and distributed by the people in the community over a decade later.

Lena Maller, Community Engagement Officer at the Forest of Dean District Council wrote in a 2016 report: “People responded positively to the fact that they could use something which they enjoyed doing. The skill of knitting, creating something which could help other people; something they could do in their own time and at their own convenience, with friends and family. People were inspired not only to create one, but also to give one to someone they knew living with dementia.”

To find out more about the project, to see some of the things people have been making, and for the Forget Me Not Book Maker pattern, you can visit the Forest of Dean Dementia Action Alliance website.

The group is also offering further support. It has a surplus of donated wool which can be shared with crafters, and it can provide a Fiddle Quilt to those who may benefit from it. Anyone interested in these can contact the group via email at [email protected]