Carers being recognised and supported is hugely important. With many people who look after someone not seeing themselves as an unpaid carer, we all have a role to play in ensuring carers are recognised, aware of support and able to get the support they need.
Eight organisations have been awarded the Carer Friendly Tick Award accreditation, acknowledging their work to ensure unpaid carers are identified and supported. These are:
- Caister Academy, Great Yarmouth
- Cambridge University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust Department of Neurology, Cambridge
- Integrated Care Team Huntingdon (Cambridgeshire and Peterborough NHS Foundation Trust), Huntingdon
- Lynn Grove Academy, Great Yarmouth
- St Clement’s High School, King’s Lynn
- St Michaels V.A. Junior School, Norwich
- Sprowston Community Academy, Sprowston
- The Workshop, King’s Lynn.
Belinda Jones, Awareness and Voice Team Manager, said, “It is always massively encouraging to see people taking action, so that carers of all ages are recognised and given the support they need.
“Many people who are looking after someone do not even realise themselves that they are a carer.
“Reading through the applications for these most recent awards, seeing the ways people are helping carers to be identified and then supported is really powerful. These awards are very much deserved.
“These latest Carer Friendly Tick accreditations include renewals along with settings achieving the award for the first time. They cover education along with healthcare and community settings. We expect that with the new Carer’s Leave Act coming into effect in April we will also see more employers realising the need and benefits of making sure their staff who may have a caring responsibility outside of their paid job, are recognised and supported, and join other employers who hold the Carer Friendly Tick Award.”
‘Seen, supported and celebrated’
Those who have been given the Carer Friendly Tick Award, for the first time or in renewal have spoken of why they believe it is so valuable.
Lynn Grove Academy said, “We are thrilled to have been awarded the Young Carer Friendly Tick Award again in recognition of our commitment to the young carers in our school and their families.
“The award encourages us to continue to expand upon the work we are currently doing and hopefully enables our families to feel confident that their children will be ‘seen, supported and celebrated’ in the way that they deserve.
“Young Carers face significant challenges but are still capable of incredible achievements with the correct support, therefore we strive to ensure that no young carer at Lynn Grove Academy goes unnoticed.”
Helen McCarney, Head teacher at St Michael’s V.A. Junior School said, “We are very proud of all our young carers and the responsibilities they have outside of school. Being able to support them in school is our privilege. Having the Carer Friendly Tick enables the school to show that we respect the good work they do and that as a school, we are here for those young people too.”
The Workshop, King’s Lynn, said, “The Workshop doesn’t just want to say it’s an inclusive space without doing the work behind the scenes to make it so. Getting our Carer Friendly Tick Award means reflecting what young carers who come to classes want and need from us in our policies.”
Jodie Jenkins, Young Carers Lead at Sprowston Community Academy, said, “Achieving the Carer Friendly Tick Award, demonstrates our ongoing commitment to providing a high level of provision for our young carers at Sprowston Community Academy.
“The Award helps to raise awareness of young carers in the school and wider community, which is something our staff and students feel passionate about.”
St Clement’s High School said, “We applied for the Carer Friendly Tick because we strive to recognise our young carers at St Clement’s High School and want them to have the correct support in place to ensure they reach their full potential.
“It means a great deal to us that our staff are trained annually and our young carers feel comfortable asking for help as it’s such a selfless and amazing thing that they do. We are over the moon to have received this award.”
Patricia Henry, a Multiple Sclerosis specialist nurse with Cambridge University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust Department of Neurology said, “All of our patients, from the day they are diagnosed with MS until their later years, are living with a long-term neuro muscular progressive condition. This does not just affect how they live or their quality of life but also affects the people around them who often end up being their carers. So, we are very conscious of the fact that we are not just looking after people with Multiple Sclerosis but also look after their carers too as they are such an important part of each person’s support system.
“We like to highlight to carers where they can turn to for support and information. We also make sure that any carer looking after somebody with Multiple Sclerosis knows about setting up a formal ‘What If?’ Plan with Caring Together. “Increasingly we are much more aware of young carers as well who may be looking after parents with Multiple Sclerosis and who need support and recognition for what they do.”
