Record year for Alzheimer’s Research UK as it achieves £50m income milestone during groundbreaking year

Despite the cost-of-living crisis, the UK’s leading dementia research charity’s financial performance was stronger than any year to date. This was fuelled by continued support from donors, fundraisers, and volunteers, and included welcoming 20,000 new donors, helping contribute to voluntary donations totalling £46.9m.

Globally, the last twelve months have been widely regarded as a turning point in dementia research, with positive trial results reported for the first drugs designed to slow Alzheimer’s disease - lecanemab and donanemab. These breakthroughs are set to change the outlook for people with dementia and demonstrate the impact of decades of support for dementia research.

The year also saw the charity start a new chapter in its 31-year history. In May, Alzheimer’s Research UK launched a new 10-year strategy – Alzheimer's Research UK: Towards A Cure. This will see it focus its efforts on three priority areas - treatment, diagnosis, and prevention – emphasising the changes it wants to see for people affected by dementia.

Complimenting these strategic changes, Alzheimer’s Research UK unveiled a new identity, centred around the brand platform – For A Cure. The charity has overhauled its look and tone, with a new strapline and visual identity, including a revamped logo.

Highlights in the charity’s Annual Report include the commitment of £28.9m to its charitable activities, including £23m towards pioneering research. Researchers funded by the charity continued to make important strides in their work, publishing over 500 scientific papers, each revealing an important discovery about the diseases that cause dementia. Among these, a co-funded study called the ‘Insight 46’ project, revealed being consistently physically active throughout life is linked with better cognitive function in later life. Another discovered an HIV drug could help protect against build-up of dementia-related proteins.

Of the charity’s standout initiatives in the last financial year, scientists at its Drug Discovery Alliance added seven potential new targets, growing its portfolio to 42 active projects in Cambridge, London and Oxford.

Another highlight was the launch of the Think Brain Health Check-in, designed to help people better understand their brain healthy habits. This came after a YouGov survey revealed only 2% of Brits are doing everything they can to look after their brain health. The Check-in stemmed from 2021’s Think Brain Health initiative, which launched after research showed up to 40% of dementia cases are linked to factors we can influence, such as diet.

In another significant milestone, Alzheimer’s Research UK celebrated the 10-year anniversary of its Chief Executive, Hilary Evans. Coinciding with this milestone, Hilary was appointed Co-Chair of the government’s Dementia Mission – set up in honour of the late Dame Barbara Windsor. The Mission, modelled on the successful COVID-19 vaccine Taskforce, will bring together experts from across academia, healthcare and industry to further boost the UK’s ability to translate scientific discoveries into new treatments, and future-proof the nation’s clinical research infrastructure.
 

Hilary Evans, Chief Executive at Alzheimer’s Research UK said:
“This year marks an incredible milestone for Alzheimer’s Research UK as we become a £50m charity. I’m immensely proud of our achievements, including our continued support to pioneering research, helping to accelerate progress towards a cure. This is a testament to our wonderful supporters, partners, volunteers and workforce, who’ve worked incredibly hard to support our mission to accelerate progress towards a cure.
 

“I’ve had the privilege of serving Alzheimer’s Research UK for the past decade and I’ve seen how far we’ve come. We now stand at a tipping point for dementia research, with the first generation of effective treatments showing promise in trials. However, we recognise the journey ahead. Around 1 million people in the UK currently live with dementia, and – despite this year’s welcome news – we need to ensure that any new treatments that are approved by regulators are made available to people who could benefit. So our immediate priority will be working to put life-changing treatments into the hands of people who need them.”