Aim To present the actions taken by the Scottish Dementia Clinical Research Network (SDCRN) to comply with Scotland’s National Dementia Strategy (SNDS) on patient and public involvement (PPI).

Background Tackling priorities in dementia research is paramount to success in planning and delivering effective health services. Identifying such priorities is a task that should involve patients with dementia and their carers. Aware of the potential importance that the public has in shaping the future of dementia research, the Scottish Government has launched an initiative that places PPI at its core.

The SDCRN, funded by the Chief Scientist Office, has responded to this initiative and has developed a strategic PPI agenda.

Data sources Experience of developing and implementing an extensive range of PPI activities with patients with dementia and their carers in Scotland.

Review methods This is an informative paper.

Discussion The paper discusses the strategy that the SDCRN has adopted to comply with government PPI priorities, thus supporting the strategic agenda for Scottish topic-specific research networks.

Conclusion The challenges that researchers face when engaging with patients with dementia and their carers can be overcome by promoting a culture that supports dementia research. Through the development of the PPI strategy, the SDCRN has encouraged and enabled the public to become active partners in research.

Implications for practice/research Involving the public in dementia research is a priority. This paper highlights how this can be achieved through extensive partnership working, collaboration and the implementation of various PPI activities to allow the public to play a major influential role in the development of future dementia services.