It’s Carers Week! We are proud to join the UK-wide Carers Week campaign and support unpaid carers. We hope you can help us raise awareness of caring and the importance of carers throughout this week and beyond!
Sebastian Fischer, Chief Executive of VOCAL said:
The impact of the pandemic on unpaid carers has been huge. More than ever in these difficult times, carers are the pillars of our care system! The challenges of caring won’t disappear with the easing of lockdown. That’s why we must double our efforts to reach carers, make them aware of available supports and help them reduce the physical and emotional burden they have faced in the past year.
The Carers Week campaign is an opportunity to raise awareness of caring in our society and encourage carers to take up the support they are entitled to. Too many people still don’t see themselves as unpaid carers. We encourage them to contact us, visit our website and see what support is available.”
Am I a carer?
Are you supporting a family member, partner, relative or friend, of any age, who needs help to manage a long term condition, disability, physical or mental health problem or addiction? If the answer is yes – you are a carer.
Your caring role could be as simple as getting their shopping once a week, taking them to medical appointments or you could be responsible for all their everyday needs.
You can’t always tell if someone is a carer but those providing care and support to family members and friends need support too. You may see yourself as doing what any wife, husband, partner, son, daughter, parent, relative or friend would do. You are also a carer.
What support is available?
Our team of dedicated carer support practitioners provide one-to-one support to carers regardless of the age or condition of the person being cared for. We can support you in any caring situation, through the following mechanisms:
- Carer training – free learning opportunities on health and wellbeing, and condition-specific topics such as Dementia, Stroke and MS: carerstraining.co.uk
- Peer support – join our peer support groups or one-to-one meetings with a trained peer mentor volunteer who is also a carer
- Information and advice surgeries – led by professionals in specialist areas such as money matters, legal matters, long-term care and accessing breaks
- Wee Breaks – help accessing a short break from your caring role
- Family Support Addictions – specialist support for those affected by someone else’s drug or alcohol use
To find out more and self-refer, visit our website: www.vocal.org.uk