Dr Carol Sargent has been a Director of For Brian since June 2024 and is a passionate advocate for dementia inclusion, brain health and enabling people to continue living fulfilling lives following a diagnosis of dementia or other chronic conditions. Drawing on a unique combination of scientific expertise, business leadership, lived experience as a family carer and years of working alongside people living with dementia, Carol is committed to changing perceptions and creating opportunities for people to remain active, connected and valued members of their communities.
Carol’s professional career began in pharmaceutical science, where she worked as both a scientist and project manager for international organisations including AstraZeneca and Merck. Her work took her across the UK, France, Sweden and the United States, researching the physical impacts of chronic diseases and leading complex international projects. During this period, she also spent five years working as a consultant, helping pharmaceutical companies identify business opportunities that could improve disease intervention and patient outcomes.
Her career took a different direction when both her mother and mother-in-law were diagnosed with dementia. Becoming a family carer prompted Carol to combine her scientific curiosity and research skills with a determination to better understand the challenges faced by people living with dementia and those who support them. Through lived experience, she recognised that many people were being defined by their diagnosis rather than supported to continue living meaningful lives.
In 2014, Carol founded MindforYou, an award-winning organisation providing specialist supported holidays for people living with dementia and their family carers. Under her leadership, MindforYou became a pioneering force in dementia-friendly tourism, demonstrating that with the right support, people affected by dementia could continue to enjoy travel, holidays and new experiences.
Working closely with people living with dementia, carers, tourism providers and researchers, Carol helped develop social impact measures, facilitated focus groups and contributed to the growing evidence base around dementia-friendly travel. Her work informed guidance produced by Visit England and Visit Scotland on dementia-friendly tourism, led to presentations at the UK Dementia Congress and supported the inclusion of dementia considerations within Euan’s Guide, the UK’s leading disabled access review platform.
Following the pandemic, Carol successfully led the transition of MindforYou into a charitable cooperative and secured £465,000 in funding to restart and expand its services. Recognising the need for wider change across mainstream industries, she stepped away from the organisation in 2022 and established Sargent Group Consulting in 2023.
Through Sargent Group Consulting, Carol works with the travel, tourism and hospitality sectors to help organisations confidently welcome and support people living with dementia and other long-term conditions. She believes that accessible, inclusive services benefit everyone and that industry, government, health, social care and charitable organisations must work together to create environments where people can continue to thrive.
Alongside her consultancy work, Carol remains deeply involved in community-based dementia initiatives. She is Vice Chair and Secretary of the Leicester, Leicestershire and Rutland Dementia Friendly Community and is the lead organiser of Seahouses Dementia Disco, part of the national Dementia Disco movement. Working alongside local volunteers, businesses and community organisations, she has helped create an inclusive monthly event that brings together people living with dementia, care home residents, families, carers and local residents through music, dancing, friendship and shared experiences.
As a Director of For Brian, Carol shares the organisation’s belief that a diagnosis of dementia should be viewed as a new and different phase of life rather than the final phase of life. She is committed to challenging negative stereotypes, reducing fear and promoting a more balanced understanding of what it means to live with dementia.
Carol’s work is driven by a simple but powerful vision: a world where people living with dementia are recognised for their abilities rather than their limitations, where communities are equipped to support inclusion, and where everyone has the opportunity to continue living life to the full.
Through her leadership, advocacy and innovation, Carol continues to inspire organisations, communities and individuals to rethink what is possible after a dementia diagnosis and to build a more inclusive future for all.