Care First - Awareness Leaflet [Digital Only]-merged by Polly Sharpe

Booklets

Printed advice booklets are available on request, covering:

• Childcare

• Elderly relatives

• Drinking

• Debt

• Family Breakdown

• Bereavement

If you’re looking for information and support, come to Care first...

The Care first service can be accessed online or via phone or typetalk for people with hearing difficulties.

We also have an interpreter service in 150 languages.

If you have used a Care first service, we would really like to know whether it was helpful.

There is a short evaluation form on our website which can be submitted anonymously. We appreciate your comments and aim to constantly improve our service.

www. carefirst-lifestyle.co.uk

For FREE and confidential advice

24 hours a day, 365 days a year, just contact Care first: Your log in details

www. carefirst-lifestyle.co.uk

Confidential help & advice whenever you need it

Care first provides confidential, impartial advice and support 24 hours a day, 365 days a year.

The service is FREE for you to access whenever you need. You don’t need to ask permission from your manager or organisation before contacting Care first. Through Care first, you can access a number of services:

Information and advice via your phone

Our Information and Advice specialists are here to help you find practical ways forward when you feel overwhelmed by problems. Sometimes, having the information to make a sensible plan and some support in doing so, is all it takes to feel better. Our advisors are highly trained to quickly find what you need and help you get back in control of your life. Common subjects include -

• Family and personal: Relationships, divorce, child support, domestic violence, childcare, elder care, community care, changing a name

• Debt: Credit, debt, banks, loans, consolidation

• Workplace: Bullying and harassment, maternity rights/pay, sick pay, health and safety at work

Online services

Care first Lifestyle is an online resource containing information, advice and articles for issues occurring in everyday life.

AT HOME

Balancing home life with work can be challenging, especially if you are experiencing difficulties in your personal life. Our At Home section provides support for issues such as; debt, finances, relationships, family, your home, bereavement and childcare.

AT WORK

Many of our friendships, goals, ambitions and experiences stem from the workplace. Coping with work-related pressures will help maintain your wellbeing and the ability to be positive and effective. At Work contains articles, information, advice and support to address problems such as; stress, change, conflict, promotion, pressure, retirement...

HEALTH

This section contains balanced, independent information and advice on physical health, wellbeing, stress, nutrition; a place to check out health worries or to get inspiration and support for healthy habits.

ONLINE HELP

Counselling services

All our counsellors are members of and accredited to the British Association for Counselling and Psychotherapy (BACP), with extensive experience and expertise. Discuss anything that is troubling you, whether it is personal difficulties – for example relationships, family matters, stress, loss or bereavement; or work-related issues such as feeling pressure, work-load, changes at work, bullying or harassment.

Whatever your situation you can be sure of a supportive and constructive response.

You are not alone.

Confidentiality

Although provided by your employer, Care first services are completely independent and your call is treated in confidence in accordance with the BACP Ethical Framework. When you make contact you will be asked to identify your employer and you may also be asked for other information – this is purely for statistical use.

Toolkit

Tools to identify behaviours and monitor progress.

Insights

Understand yourself betterand do more of the things you like.

Journals

Record worries, emotions and actions in the moment.

Promote lifestyle changes

Exercise videos, lifestyle quizzes and logs – Make lifestylechanges to improve your wellbeing.

Do you need... information?

If you’re searching for an answer and don’t know where to start, contact Care first for help.

We offer practical information on all sorts of issues, including:

• Legal matters, including consumer rights, family law and citizenship

• Financial information and support, including debt management, wills, taxes and benefits

• Workplace matters

Get access to the help you need 24/7 with Care first Or access help online

USERNAME: PASSWORD:

Do you need help?

If you’re looking for information and support, come to Care first...

We’re here to offer you practical support and information when you need it most. We also offer a range of wellbeing services to support your emotional health, both at work and at home. You can access our team of professional counsellors 24 hours a day.

Get access to the help you need 24/7 with Care first Or access help online

USERNAME:

Are you feeling... overwhelmed?

If you’re feeling anxious about your current situation, please visit the website below for help or call our confidential helplineyou can access our team of professional counsellors 24 hours a day.

USERNAME: PASSWORD: online help

Get access to the help you need 24/7 with Care first Or access help online

Are you feeling... down?

If it’s time you addressed your wellbeing, contact Care first for help.

We provide a range of emotional health and wellbeing services including:

• One-to-one counselling to discuss anything that is worrying you, e.g. workplace stress, family or relationship issues, bereavement, money worries and much more

• Guidance and support to get you back on track

Get access to the help you need 24/7 with Care first Or access help online

USERNAME:

PASSWORD:

Struggling with menopause?

You’re not alone - research shows 8 out of 10 menopausal women are in work and 10% will leave work* as a result of the menopause.

If you’re struggling to cope with the physical and psychological symptoms of menopause, or you’re just looking for support, our Menopause Mentors are here to help you.

We also offer a range of wellbeing services to support your emotional health, both at work and at home.

Plus you can access our team of professional counsellors 24 hours a day.

*According to recent research

Get access to the help you need 24/7 with Care first

Or access help online

USERNAME: PASSWORD:

Support for Managers

Find out how Care first can support you as a manager and help you to help your team...

• Care first offers confidential advice, information and counselling, 24/7 365 days a year. Our services can be accessed online or by phone.

• If you or a member of your team needs advice or support with a work-related or personal issue or situation, suggest they contact Care first for help.

• If they do not wish to access help, you can seek advice from Care first to help you to manage the situation.

• If you want to discuss your approach to sickness absence, bullying or harassment, grievances, disciplinary action or any other difficulties you are having with your staff, just call the freephone number for informed advice.

PLEASE NOTE: Care first is not a substitute or replacement for your organisations internal polices/procedures

To find out more about management support, visit: https://carefirst-lifestyle.co.uk/extranet/managers-area

Coming to terms with loss?

Get the emotional and practical support you need to help you at this time.

You can access our team of professional counsellors 24 hours a day.

You can also get practical information from our team of specialists who will be able to assist you with any loss-related queries you may have.

Get access to the help you need 24/7 with Care first

Or access help online

USERNAME:

PASSWORD:

Afraid to share your feelings?

Men often don’t seek support for mental health issues, but confidential support is available through Care first. Whether you are dealing with relationship issues, financial worries, pressure at work, feeling depressed or anything else that affects your wellbeing, Care first is here for you. You can access a wealth of professional advice online or contact our team of qualified counsellors 24 hours a day.

Get access to the help you need 24/7 with Care first Or access help online

USERNAME:

PASSWORD:

Relationship problems?

Whether you need emotional support or impartial, practical information, we can help you.

You can access our team of professional counsellors 24 hours a day. You can also get practical advice from one of our information specialists who can assist you with a range of queries, including housing, benefits, family law, financial matters and much more.

Get access to the help you need 24/7 with Care first

Or access help online

USERNAME:

PASSWORD:

Struggling with menopause?

If you’re struggling to cope with the physical and psychological symptoms of menopause, or you’re just looking for support, our Menopause Mentors are here to help you.

We also offer a range of wellbeing services to support your emotional health, both at work and at home.

Plus you can access our team of professional counsellors 24 hours a day.

MENOPAUSAL WOMEN ARE IN WORK*

WILL LEAVE WORK DUE TO MENOPAUSE* 8/10 10%

*According to recent research

Get access to the help you need 24/7 with Care first Or access help online

USERNAME:

PASSWORD:

Please find an update to the BET

Eyecare Policy

We found out recently that the eye care voucher provider, Edenred, are stopping issuing the vouchers both for eye tests and for spectacles.

Eye Tests

We are now reimbursing employees for eye tests up to a maximum of £30 using the normal expenses claim form – available on the BET People site, on the forms page: https://sites.google.com/bohunt.hants.s ch.uk/bet-people/usefulinformation/bet-forms. Any claims for eye tests should be entered into the “Other Costs” column on the expenses form, once completed the claim will need to be approved by the employee’s line manager & then sent on to BET Finance at finance@bohunt.hants.sch.uk accompanied by a copy of the optician’s receipt for the eye test. Because the new scheme is to be reimbursed via the expenses form, the eye test request form is no longer required and has been removed from the BET People site.

Spectacles

We still have a very small stock of spectacles vouchers, please continue to use the existing spectacles form if employees are prescribed spectacles solely for VDU use – please find here form HERE.

Once we have used up the remaining vouchers, spectacles prescribed solely for VDU use, will also be reimbursed using the trust expenses claim form, to a maximum of £75 & the spectacles request form will be removed from the BET People site.

As with the eye tests, any claims for spectacles reimbursement should be submitted and approved by the employee’s line manager & sent onto BET Finance together with a copy of the optician’s receipt for the spectacles.

For information, the BET Eyecare Policy has been updated to include the change from vouchers to reimbursement and is available on the BET People site on the policies page

Your new employee benefits portal

Register for the portal – step 1Your chance to win

on a laptop or desktop

go to portsmouthcc.vivup.co.uk

on your mobile device

scan this QR code

Click register on the web or mobile site.

You will need:

Your employee number

This can be found on your payslip or on Fusion. If you are unsure of your employee number, please speak to your school admin or finance contact.

The name of your organisation

Portsmouth City Council - Bohunt

Your school is part of the schools 2 group so please select Portsmouth City Council - schools 2

Your email

We recommend that you use your personal email address to register, as this means you can be notified of new discounts or benefits even when you are not at work. If you would prefer to use your work email you can.

If you have any issues registering, contact Vivup customer support line on: 01252 784540 and select option 3 or email customersupport@vivup.co.uk

If you register between 1 November and 31 December 2023, you will automatically be entered into a draw to win one of the following four prizes - a Ninja Dual Zone Air Fryer, Toshiba TV, Apple iPad or Shark Hair Wrap and Cordless Vacuum.

Access the portal – step 2

Once you have registered, you can access the portal via the website

portsmouthcc.vivup.co.uk

Or by downloading the app on your app store. Search Vivup in the app store or use the QR for the apple app store or google app store.

If you would like to be notified of new benefits and discounts allow push notifications on the app.