Putting Carers on the Map – Carers Week 2024

Posted on June 25, 2024June 26, 2024 by Michael Ford

Putting Carers on the Map – Carers Week 2024

Carers Week is an annual campaign to raise awareness of caring, highlight the challenges unpaid carers face, and recognise the contribution they make to families and communities throughout the UK. It also helps people who don’t think of themselves as having caring responsibilities to identify as carers and access much-needed support. Carers Week is led by Carers UK with the support of a number of other charities.

This year we celebrated Carers Week 10th – 16th June and helped to ‘Put Carers on the Map’ in Carmarthenshire with an informative and relaxing day at Llanelli Library.

A warm welcome awaited carers who had the opportunity to chat to staff from 16 organisations and find out more about support available in their caring role. There was time for a friendly chat, cake and a cuppa as well as being introduced to two wonderful Carmarthenshire Therapy Dogs, Sheba and Marshall.

Carers also enjoyed a Creative Arts Workshop, Virtual Reality Demonstrations as well as having a de-stressing and soothing mini Thai Massage Therapy session from Services | Nuumam Thai Massage | Llanelli

A big thank you to all carers who attended, organisations who supported the event and Carmarthenshire County Council who funded the event.

Investors in Carers – Gold Award revalidated

Posted on June 25, 2024June 25, 2024 by Michael Ford

Investors in Carers – Gold Award revalidated

Our CEO Alison Harries is very proud to receive a re-validated Investors in Carers Gold Award from Anna Bird – Assistant Director -Strategic Partnerships, Diversity & Inclusion at Hywel Dda Health Board “Supporting unpaid carers of all ages is the heart of who we are what we do”

“Carers Trust Crossroads West Wales are delighted to have achieved our gold level revalidation, supporting unpaid carers of all ages is the heart of who we are and what we do therefore it is great that this has been recognised with this accreditation. Credit goes to all our staff in all they do for unpaid carers”

Care and Repair – Managing Better

Posted on June 25, 2024June 25, 2024 by Michael Ford

Care and Repair offer a Managing Better service

Managing Better is a free home visiting service offering advice and practical help for people over the age of 50 who have hearing loss, sight loss, dementia, or have had a stroke.

How we can help you:

A free Healthy Home Check for your home
Check what benefits you’re entitled to and help you apply for them

Help you reduce risk of falls and injury at home
Help you access useful services and connect you with our partner agencies

Help to assist you to live independently and safely
Advise on technology to increase your independence, reduce loneliness and boost your confidence

Click here to find out more

Carers Wales – Roadshow in Carmarthen

Posted on June 24, 2024June 24, 2024 by Michael Ford

Carers Wales – Roadshow in Carmarthen

When: Wednesday 17^th July 2024, 11am -3pm

Where: The Taf Suite, Halliwell Conference Centre, University of Wales Trinity St Davids, College Road, Carmarthen, SA31 3EP

Join us at our in-person Roadshow in Carmarthen, where you can meet local carers and hear more about Carers Wales, our campaigns and support.

There’ll be lots of opportunities to chat to Carers Wales staff, ask questions and get information and support.

Working together to support Carers – Co production in action in Carmarthenshire County Council by Emma Taylor-Hill

Posted on June 24, 2024June 24, 2024 by Michael Ford

Working together to support Carers – Co production in action in Carmarthenshire County Council by Emma Taylor-Hill

A ‘Working Together to Support Carers conference’ was held recently in Carmarthenshire. The Head of Adult Social Care said Supporting Carers is a priority in Carmarthenshire and the local authority wants to ensure a co production approach is used to inform this work.

The audience was made up from practitioners and carers. This included representatives from statutory and third sector services. The agenda included a series of presentations in the morning including:

Welcome and introduction to the day by Avril Bracey (Head of Adult Social Care, Carmarthenshire County Council) and Nick Andrews from Developing Evidence Enriched Practice (DEEP)
A video message from Luke Clements on the legislative and policy context
Information about the experiences of carers from Claire Morgan (Director of Carers Wales)
Reflection from a social worker about his work with a carer

In the afternoon, guests were able to join tables for discussions on different topics. This included:

Early support
Information/advice and assistance
Carers assessments
Respite/short breaks/direct payments.
Impact of the cost-of-living crisis on carers

Discussions were captured and will be collated to inform strategies in Carmarthenshire including the developing prevention strategy. This was a wonderful example of co-production and the day enabled qualitative information to be gathered, so that the voices of carers could be included in planning for support provision.

One theme that kept emerging throughout the day was the importance of relationship-based practice and how this can support a better understanding of those with caring responsibilities and their needs. It was evident that there is complexity within families with multiple carers and in some cases, this was not always being recognized and supported. It was suggested that there needs to be more of a proactive approach in identifying those with caring responsibilities who may benefit from assessment.

There was a great deal of discussion about the need for short breaks to be bespoke and in line with what matters for both the carer and the person with care and support needs. There were also suggestions for direct payments to be used flexibly and creatively to ensure a person-centred approach.

Feedback from carers was positive and there are plans to hold a similar event next year

If you would like to find out more about this topic, please have a look at the Welsh Government annual report for 2023 on the delivery plan for unpaid carers:

Unpaid carers delivery plan annual report 2023,

Carers Support West Wales

Posted on June 21, 2024June 21, 2024 by Michael Ford

Carers Support West Wales

During Carers Week 2024, the Carers Support West Wales team shared their latest promotional bilingual videos promoting the services available on their regional website, Carers Support West Wales (CSWW).

The CSWW website supports the provision and accessibility of consistent carer specific information, assistance and advice for unpaid carers in the three counties. CSWW is divided into three distinct sections, allowing carers to easily navigate the platform and explore information locally and regionally.

On the ‘My Community’ section, carers will find local offers, promotions and discounts that can support them in their caring role in their community. An interactive map provides a quick visualisation of any activities close by as well as the relevant contact details.
The ‘Support’ section provides support that is felt could benefit them as a carer such as how to register as an unpaid carer with your GP and how to register for a Carers Recognition Card. Using a filter system to navigate this, carers are able to search several local and national organisations to find the information they need.
The ‘News’ section shares essential information that is timely and relevant, from a list of support with cost-of-living crisis to Carers magazines providing local and national information that may be useful to carers and professionals.

For more information, please visit carerssupportwestwales.org or contact info@carerssupportwestwales.org

Dementia support with Admiral Nurses

Posted on June 21, 2024June 21, 2024 by Michael Ford

Dementia support with Admiral Nurses

Hywel Dda University Health Board, in partnership with Dementia UK, provide a specialist service for carers of people living with dementia who are experiencing difficulties as a result of their caring role.

The team covers Carmarthenshire, Ceredigion and Pembrokeshire with a focus on delivering person–centred and relationship-centred dementia care.

The West Wales Admiral Nurse Service provides practical advice and emotional and psychological support from diagnosis to post-bereavement, helping people to learn coping strategies and come to terms with the diagnosis. The service can help carers to navigate health and social care systems; provide education on dementia, signpost carers to other services and support carers to develop coping strategies.

Admiral Nurses support people at difficult times in their dementia journey, including when the condition progresses, or when tough decisions need to be made, such as a transition into residential care.

Part of the role of an Admiral Nurse is to deliver specialist interventions to carers and one particular intervention we offer is the Strategies for relatives programme (START), this intervention aims to provide carers with coping strategies and has been proven to reduce depression and anxiety for family carers of people with dementia when measured at eight months and two years after they had received the intervention. We have delivered 106 individual START sessions either 1-1 or in a group setting.

One of the carers who recently attended a START group said this:

“The START programme made me feel very supported and cared about. The Admiral Nurses were kind and very helpful. They treated us with compassion and understanding. I cannot rate them and the START course highly enough. Meeting other carers was really helpful too. We got along really well and supported one another. It’s so important not to feel you are the only one caring for someone with dementia. It’s good to feel you are not alone and that is what the START programme did for me. Thank you.”

If you are a carer of someone living with dementia and would like to be referred to the service, please contact your health or social care professional who can make a referral for you.

More information about the charity Dementia UK can be found here: https://www.dementiauk.org/

Charlie Duhig
Admiral Nurse Clinical Lead.

Adferiad – Carers Information Drop-in and Peer Support

Posted on March 28, 2024 by Michael Ford

Carmarthen
14:00 – 16:00
Every Monday
8-10 Woods Row, Carmarthen, SA31 1BX

Whitland
10:00 -12:00
First Friday of Every Month
Whitland Town Hall, SA34 0AA

Llanelli
10:00 – 12:00
Second Tuesday of Every Month
Lantern Centre, SA15 3BB

Llandovery
12:00 – 14:00
Last Thursday of Every Month
Our Lady Catholic Church Hall, SA20 0BD

Ammanford
10:00 – 12:00
Third Wednesday of Every Month
Ty Amman, SA18 2NA

Tumble
10:00 – 12:00
Third Tuesday of Every Month
Tumble Hall, SA14 6HR

Young Carers Update: March 2024

Posted on March 28, 2024March 28, 2024 by Michael Ford

Since Christmas the young carers project has been bustling with activity.

We’ve collaborated with the local authority young carers team and joined in with their youth clubs, providing valuable opportunities for respite in various areas across the county.

Young Carers Action Day on 14th March saw our team setting up outreach stands in three Coleg Sir Gar campuses, offering advice, support, and guidance to young people.

Over the past three months, we’ve organised numerous clubs and trips, including 5 young carer clubs, one lunch club, three young adult carer clubs, a day trip to Manor Wildlife Park and an outdoor activity residential to Llandysul Paddlers (great pics of our brave young carers!). These experiences have allowed young people to take a break from their caring roles, connect with peers who understand their experiences, and enjoy new adventures.

With Easter approaching, we’re excited about our action-packed programme of nine activities over ten days, which everyone is eagerly anticipating.

W.A.N.D (We Are Neuro Diverse)

Posted on March 28, 2024 by Michael Ford

W.A.N.D (We Are Neuro Diverse) has been set up by parents and carers of neuro diverse children to help support parent carers and/or guardians of children diagnosed with (or on the pathway to diagnosis) Autism , ADHD, PDA, etc.

Having previously been part of starting an autism group in the area, both Justine and Kathryn decided to branch out into the neurodiverse category so that they could welcome people with children with not only Autism but everyone on the spectrum.

With our enthusiastic moderators Katie, Danielle and Louise, our aim is to involve the children in exclusive inclusive events/sessions to help with socialising skills, whilst the parents, carers and siblings can be with like-minded people, this will then help alleviate feelings of isolation, loneliness and judgement that can come with these conditions in a normal setting.

For further information see the facebook group or email weareneurodiverse@yahoo.com