Worcester Warriors has been recognised nationally for their work making Sixways a dementia-friendly place.

Warriors were named Dementia Friendly Organisation of the Year in the ‘Small and Medium’ category at the National Dementia Friendly Awards held at The Royal Horseguards in central London.

The award recognised several initiatives by the club including their weekly Tackling Dementia Sports Café, which provides a safe space on matchdays for vulnerable people of all ages.

First team lock Darren Barry is one of 130 dementia friends at the Club.

He said: “As players we get a lot of spare time, Wednesdays are traditionally our day off and rather than sitting at home playing on our games consoles or twiddling our thumbs it’s a good opportunity to get involved in the community.

“For me the Tackling Dementia Café is particularly poignant because I have a grandparent who has early onset dementia and memory loss so it’s not a chore or an effort for me to come out and help people.”

Simon Northcott, who was appointed the club’s first disability and inclusion lead in 2017, said: “To win this award is incredible for the whole club. We not only have the Tackling Dementia Café, we have stewards and other staff who are dementia friends, we have a safe place at the ground and now we have been recognised for being a dementia-friendly organisation. It really is a massive honour.”

“We don’t charge. We just try to get people active and they can do as much or as little as they want to. It’s just good fun."

Warriors were nominated for the award by Cllr Lynn Denham, who said: “I am thrilled that Worcester Warriors has been recognised as national Dementia Business of the Year.

“They have shown how businesses can become more dementia friendly and have fun! Everyone benefits by making it easier for people living with dementia to continue enjoying life, including their passion for rugby.

“I hope Warriors achievement will be an inspiration to other local businesses”