Carers Trust Cambridgeshire Reaching Out to Unpaid Carers
Carers Week 6-12 June
Carers Trust Cambridgeshire will be reaching out to all unpaid carers in the community who may feel under considerable pressure during national Carers Week, 6-12 June.
The theme of this year’s Carers Week is building carer-friendly communities – helping all types of communities to support carers and their families better. Every day, 6,000 people in the UK become carers and we hope to reach out to hidden carers; those who are unaware of the caring role they are doing for family and friends and the support available to them.
More than 50 events will be held throughout Cambridgeshire and Peterborough to celebrate and highlight the valuable work of family carers in our communities, including free pampering sessions for carers, a touring information roadshow, family picnics for carers of all ages, drop-in support groups, a vintage tea party, cream teas and thanksgiving church services in celebration of carers.
The highlight of the week is a free all-day Sharing the Caring Conference organised jointly with Cambridgeshire and Peterborough NHS Foundation Trust on Tuesday, 7 June at the C3 Centre in Coldham’s Lane, Cambridge. The keynote speaker is Dr Jane Hawking, the former wife of Professor Stephen Hawking, who cared for her husband after he was diagnosed with motor neurone disease, and will highlight mental illness.
The winners of the first ever Pride in our Carers Awards will be announced in the afternoon, a glowing testament to the selfless work of unpaid family carers who have gone the extra mile to make a difference to someone’s life. Nominations have also been made for schools, voluntary organisations, health and social care professionals and employers in the region who support carers.
The day will host a lively market place of stalls provided by partners, including MIND, Making Space, Pinpoint, Assistive Technology, Recovery College and Rethink.
Dr Helen Brown, CEO of Carers Trust Cambridgeshire, said: “We would like to thank everyone who nominated in the Pride in our Carers Awards. It has been a very humbling and moving experience to learn about the dedication of these selfless family carers and we hope to reach out to many more carers like them, especially the hidden carers, during Carers Week.
“Most people don’t identify themselves as carers and are not aware of the support available to them. The Care Act was introduced last year to help prevent, reduce or delay the impact of caring and gives carers new rights; it places their health and wellbeing on the same level as the cared for person.
“At Carers Trust Cambridgeshire, we have been building Carer Friendly Communities to identify carers and link them to support as early as possible. By doing this we can provide carers with advice and guidance and enable family carers to make informed choices to help reduce the ill-health, social isolation, loss of education and work, and poverty, which carers can experience.”
Carers Week is an annual campaign to raise awareness of caring and highlight the challenges that carers face.
A full list of events during Carers Week in Cambridgeshire and Peterborough can be found on our website at https://www.caringtogether.org/events/
To book your place on Tuesday 7 June (10.30am-4.30pm) telephone 01733 748386 or go to www.sharingthecaring.eventbrite.co.uk.
