Students from Henry Bloom Noble school have won a poster competition organised by the Alzheimer’s Society.

The year six pupils, who are 10 and 11 years old, took part in the competition during Dementia Action Week, which ran in May, where they were asked to design a poster about dementia.

There were 97 entries in total from Henry Bloom Noble, Victoria Road, Arbory, Sulby and Bunscoill Rhumsaa.

Alzheimer’s Society worked alongside The Arts Council and business owner Carl Underwood, who had donated the prize, which was a day out at Laser Mayhem.

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They selected the winning school based on the theme of the poster which gave a clear message in how to support someone you meet with dementia.

Claire Cubberley, who is a dementia support worker for Alzheimer’s Society in Isle of Man, said: ‘We were delighted local children took part in the competition which helped raised awareness of dementia to a younger generation.

‘As part of Dementia Action Week this year, the charity wanted people to recognise that asking the same question over again; it’s not called getting old, it’s called getting ill and it could be a sign of dementia.

‘The school children’s poster which was based on how to support someone with dementia tied into this theme.’

Teachers at Henry Bloom Noble were delighted to have won the competition after raising dementia awareness with the year groups three to six. The pupils produced around 60 posters for the competition.

When judging the posters, Mr Underwood found it moving to see the amount of thought and work they had taken over the subject, and Carl offered a second and third place prize, a voucher for four to attend Laser Mayhem for each.

Steve Green, area manager for Alzheimer’s Society, said: ‘It was fabulous to see the winning class enjoy their prize on July 21, the day before they broke up for their summer break.

‘Raising awareness on dementia within a younger generation as part of this project can only further our campaign to encourage more people to get an early diagnosis so they can plan better for their future.

‘With diagnosis rates across the UK at a five-year low, Alzheimer’s Society says tens of thousands of people are now living with undiagnosed dementia, meaning they are missing out on the vital care and support a diagnosis can bring.’