Highlights from Carers Week

Last week we celebrated Carers Week, a great opportunity to highlight the incredible work that Carers do on a daily basis.

It is estimated that carers efforts save the economy £162 billion a year, proving how monumental their impact is on the UK.

Carers Week is also a time to discuss the hardships that come with caring. Carers UK started the week by publishing a report which revealed that 62% of those who care, or previously provided care, said they had ‘no choice’ in taking on the role. This accounts for 10 million people. Read the full report here.

We hosted our Caring Matters event, to help educate and support carers with their struggles as well as offering a few hours of respite during carers week.

Caring Matters

The event started at 9:30 with a speach from CEO Carl Tams, followed by an introduction to our Carers Time Team, which provide our 4 wellbeing services – Counselling, Carers Breaks, Walk and Talk, and Befriending and Connections.

The carers then had two hours to explore the five half hour presentations/discussions led by external organisations, including South Glos Council, St Peter’s Hospice, NHS Talking Therapies, North Bristol NHS Trust Respect Form.

In the second half, carers chose between two activities. A Walk and Talk session, led by our walk and talk officer Stacey Vallis or a music therapy session led by Soundwell Music Therapy.

Both sessions were very relaxed and helped carers enjoy respite through the power of exercise and communal singing.

We’re still digesting the evaluation, but so far it looks positive. We’re looking forward to reading your feedback so we can make the next Caring Matters even better. We hope everyone who attended learned something, connected with others or merely enjoyed some respite from their caring responsibilities.  

We’re very grateful for all the speakers, stall holders and of course, the carers who made this event possible.  

BBC 

On the same day, former carer Amanda Threlfall spoke to BBC Radio Bristol ‘s John Darvel for Carers Week. During their beautiful talk, they discussed the impact of caring on Amanda’s life, the importance of reaching out, and how we helped her. 

You can listen to the full interview here, which starts at the time 2:09:30.  

Charlotte Keel 

We also hosted a drop-in at Charlotte Keel Medical Practice and provided advice and signposting to a surprising number of carers. We’ll be following up some of these carers with Carers Assessments and more. 

We’re always happy to see the UK showing their appreciation for carers on Carers Week, but at Carers Support Centre, this appreciation never ends. Thank you for everything you do to improve the lives of others. We look forward to seeing you at Carers Rights Day and the next Caring Matters.