In an ageing society, caring for people with dementia is one of the most important challenges we face.

Not my words, but those of the former health secretary Alan Johnson and no doubt a view shared by the new coalition government.

You could add that it’s also one of the most daunting challenges in our society.

As the population ages, the cost of social care rises and we are confronting the biggest reduction in public sector spending for decades. ~

As today’s story on proposals for a new specialist nursing home illustrates, the issue is a critical one for Poole as much as anywhere else.

By 2025 the borough will need a further 720 residential and nursing beds with 500 of these specifically for people suffering with dementia. These are the council’s own figures.

Meanwhile, the number of people living with dementia in England – currently around 570,000, is expected to double in the next 30 years. The plans for the new facility in Mount Road, Parkstone seem to be widely supported, not least by local residents, the Alzheimers Society and Age Concern.

However, planning chairman Cllr Ann Stribley has red-carded the application. She says there are a few details to iron out and that she is not opposed in principle.

Let’s hope that’s all it is.

Because the dementia crisis is already an alarming reality.