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We missed Rob at a recent event about involving people with dementia and carers in research. It was a shock to hear that he was in hospital, but I still somehow expected him to pull through. I used to work at the medical school of the hospital which was caring for Rob, which brought back memories, and I hoped that my old colleagues may be able to look in on him.

I had really valued Rob's help and support with coordinating the event at Centre for Dementia. The network that he had established was an essential part of the attendance of over 50 people. During the day we had great discussions between carers and researchers to improve the design and implementation of research at University of Nottingham and beyond. I'm sure he was looking forward to the event.

Rob has been a strong advocate for people with dementia, and was constantly shining a light on the often forgotten care of people at home and in residential settings (care homes). He was an inspiration and source of advice over the last 4 years I've worked at Institute of Mental Health, as my interest has increasingly focused on dementia. Getting to know him, we shared jokes in the coffee room, including about the state of the water feature outside of the building, and why there appeared to be so many worms at the bottom - did they have lemming-type instincts?

Rob was always approachable and friendly - when I had a question about the challenges of negotiating the ethical and legal issues for someone with dementia who was unwilling to be admitted to hospital or receive treatment, he was open and frank about the theory and practice, and didn't make me feel inferior for being nonclinical. We'll miss him, personally & professionally.