SL Carers News Spring 2013

Carers News Spring 2013 Newsletter Edition 79

Contents About Us 2 Notice Board 2 Christmas Lunch 3 Carers Trip 3 Census 4

Finance Enquiry 4 Bedroom Tax

5 Lancaster University 5 Young Adult Carers 6 SLC Survey 6

Annual Review Events Calendar Support Groups

7 8 8

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About Us We provide a wide range of support and information to both adult and young carers.

We have activities for Young Carers and have outreach activities across South Lakeland for all ages.

South Lakeland Carers provide regular social activities, a monthly lunch club and monthly carers groups throughout South Lakeland.

We can also provide additional emotional support through our counselling, sitting service and relaxation therapies.

For more information about our services or if you would like our support, please get in touch.

Contact us:-

South Lakeland Carers Eskdale House Shap Road, Kendal LA9 6DQ Tel: 01539 815970 Email: admin@slcarers.org.uk www.slcarers.org.uk

We have many volunteering opportunities including sitting and befriending, lunch clubs, supporting young carers, admin and becoming a trustee.

Carers Trust is a new charity which was formed by the merger of The Princess Royal Trust for Carers and Crossroads Care in April 2012.

Notice Board The Times - Carer Magazine The Times newspaper have published its first Carers supplement. The December magazine was included in all copies of the Times sold in the North of England and Scotland. This was a distribution of around 275,000 copies. The Times will also be emailing a copy to a database they have of 42,000 GP’s, senior nurses and social workers.

The Times intend to run this quarterly, and future editions will be UK wide. Take a look online if you missed the first edition, and keep your eyes peeled for the next edition.

To do list:* Complete and return your form for the Carers Trip - Remember the £5 refundable deposit

* Complete the South Lakeland Carers Annual SXrvey * Write to Tim Farron MP to lobby the Government about the ‘‘Bedroom Tax” * Have a lovely Easter Weekend 29th March to 1st April

http://www.timescarer.co.uk

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South Lakeland Carers

Local Carers News Carers Christmas Lunch 2012 This year our Carers Christmas lunch was held on the 14th December at The Stonecross Manor Hotel in Kendal. On arrival we were greeted with the singing of carols, this was led by two of the members from Saint Thomas Church Kendal. The singers had song sheets and once everyone was seated it was lovely to join in with the singing.

Our lunch was delicious and we had a good selection for our starters, main course and pudding. This was then finished with coffee/tea, mints

and of course the festive mince pie.

The chair of South Lakeland Carers, Dorothy Lownds, paid tribute to the work that Carers do and thanked the staff at South Lakeland Carers for their commitment to supporting Carers.

It was then time to draw the Christmas raffle. First prize of a wonderful food hamper was won

by Beryl Buckham.

The second and

third prizes, of vouchers, were won by Christine Webster and Francis Wright. A thoroughly enjoyable festive afternoon was had by all.

Carers Trip - Tuesday 21 May 2013 The Lowry and Imperial War Museum, Salford Quays Volunteer Nancy Huck has very kindly organised a trip to The Lowry and Imperial War Museum.

We will be visiting the awardwinning Imperial War Museum in its tenth birthday year to discover powerful stories that reveal how war shapes lives, from a soldier’s last letter home to the twisted steel of New York City's World Trade Center. You will also have time to look around the Lowry Galleries which show LS Lowry’s work in changing exhibitions.

Alternatively, you can look around the nearby Lowry Shopping Outlet.

The trip is open to carers and non-carers.

Cost: Carers Free - includes lunch, travel and admission.

Cost to non-carers is £10.00 Although it is free to carers we are asking for a £5.00 deposit to secure your place. This will be refunded to you on arrival.

However, if you cancel and we are not able to reallocate your place we will be unable to offer a refund.

If you would like to join us please complete the reply slip enclosed and return along with your payment/deposit as applicable.

Itinerary for the day:

9.30am - Depart from ASDA car park 11.00am - Arrive Salford Quays Free time to explore the Lowry Galleries/ Shopping Outlet 12.30pm - Lunch at the Lowry Restaurant 1.30pm - Imperial War Museum 4.00pm - Depart Salford Quays 5.30pm (Approx.) - Arrive back at ASDA. 3

Prepared to Care? is the 2013 Carers Week campaign and will focus on how the UK’s current carer population is coping, how effectively Government is supporting the growing numbers of carers, and whether the wider population is prepared for future caring responsibilities. This will take place in June and South Lakeland Carers will be involved with this as usual; more details will be in the next newsletter. But, for now, here’s an update of some of the current stories surrounding caring and carer issues.

Census reveals major rise in numbers of unpaid family carers The number of people providing unpaid care for disabled, sick or elderly relatives and loved ones has risen substantially in the last decade.

Census data released in December 2012 by the government reveals that the number of carers increased from 5.2 million to 5.8 million in England and Wales between 2001 and 2011. The greatest rise has been among those providing over 20 hours care – the point at which caring

Caring & Family Finances Inquiry Carers UK is launching a Caring and Family Finances Inquiry to provide a definitive examination of the financial impact of caring.

Running throughout 2013, the Inquiry will have carers’ voices at its heart, collecting evidence via public polling, survey data and through evidence sessions involving carers across the UK. With new 2011 Census figures showing a 10% increase in the carer population,the impact of caring is becoming a cost of living challenge for increasing 4

starts to significantly impact on the health and wellbeing of the carer, and their ability to hold down paid employment alongside their caring responsibilities.

Across England and Wales there are now a staggering 2.1 million people providing over 20 hours a week - a rise of almost half a million people in the last 10 years. Those providing the most number of hours of care – over 50 hours a week and very often caring round-the-clock - has in itself risen by 270,000 and is up from 1,088,000 to 1,360,000.

numbers of families. Yet the costs of caring are not well recognised. Many families struggle to access financial support and carers are often not given the advice and information they need. Even those receiving support often find themselves unable to make ends meet.

To build the case for better supporting carers, the Inquiry will: - Provide a definitive study into the financial impact of caring with carers’ voices at its heart.

- Assess the impact of the

The statistics for South Lakeland: 12,228 - the total number of carers 10% increase of carers since 2001

1,304 people provide between 20-49 hours of care per week - a 31% increase 2,338 people provide 50+ hours of care per week - a 28% increase

Government’s changes to benefits on carers and their families.

- Develop future policy on reforming the financial support available to families caring for older and disabled friends and relatives.

To help Carers UK collect information and to get an insight into the lives of carers, you can complete the online survey;www.surveymonkey.com/s/ stateofcaring2013

South Lakeland Carers

“Bedroom Tax” Campaign Carers UK alongside 6 other charities think it is unfair that carers and disabled people who live in social housing and need an extra bedroom are being penalised under the new Housing Benefit rules.

The aim of the campaign is to make those who are caring for someone they live with to be made exempt from the so-called ‘bedroom tax’ There are lots of reasons why carers and disabled people need an extra room: - Tracey would love to share a bedroom with her husband like other married couples but Tony sleeps in a hospital bed and depends on life saving medical equipment that fills the room.

- Dave’s wife Jan has cerebral palsy and spasms uncontrollably throughout the

night waking him constantly.

If he's going to be fit in the morning for his job as a Fork lift operator, then sometimes he has to sleep in the 'spare' room.

- Stephanie is 8 and her younger sister Amy has learning and physical disabilities that mean she wakes up throughout the night, often talking or shouting. This kept Stephanie awake and her tiredness affected her school work, so now she has own room.

New Government policy will say that Tracey, Dave and Stephanie all have homes that are too big for their needs. They say those extra rooms are a luxury. Under new Housing Benefit rules, they will have to pay extra for these rooms or be forced to move, facing debt or isolation from the friends and family who help them care.

In real terms this could mean tenants in social housing could have their benefits reduced by 14% if they have a spare bedroom or 25% if they have two or more extra rooms.

The seven charities have told the government of these concerns but so far they say carers should be treated the same as everyone else.

They want carers to write to their local MP’s to ask them to write to the Chancellor to make an exemption for carers in the Budget from the changes to Housing Benefit.

You can write to:Tim Farron MP Acland House, Yard 2, Stricklandgate, Kendal LA9 4ND tim@timfarron.co.uk

Understanding the support and support needs of older male care-givers.

The numbers of older men who provide care for a spouse or family member is growing, yet we know very little about the kinds of care support they may need. We need to know if older men need different types of support than older women. For example, men may have less need of home maintenance services and more need of the traditional home help services that are in decline, or different types of support to carry out more personal care tasks. .

Would you be willing to take part in research designed to understand more about the needs of older male carers?

If you would like to ask any questions, or you are willing to take part, please contact: Prof. Christine Milligan, Centre for Ageing Research, Division of Health Research, Lancaster University, Lancaster, LA1 4YT. Phone:- 07939 314552

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South Lakeland Carers Update New Young Adult Carer Service We are pleased to announce the launch of our new service for 16 – 25 year olds. In the past, South Lakeland Young Carers were only able to work with young people up to the age of 18 years.

Once a Young Carer reached this age, they could then be assessed as an Adult Carers.

"A new service for 16 to 25 year olds" However, the services available for young adults were not really

appropriate to their needs. For example, drop-ins and trips with Adult Carers are attended mostly by those over the age of forty.

When LloydsTSB and Northern Rock agreed to fund the post for a new Young Adult Carer for two years, we were really excited.

Several of our long-standing Young Carers were about to turn 16 years old, and we would have had to exit them from the service and leave them without any support at all.

For Young Adult Carers, the problems as a carer increase as they are now faced with major life decisions. They might want to go to university but are worried about leaving their cared for, especially if it means moving away from home and there is noone else around to help out. Or, they may just want to move out and set up a home of their own.

They may want to do a training course but not have enough money to cover it.

At South Lakeland Carers we will be able to support them as they make these decisions. We will help them find funding to cover the cost of training or travel, maybe even find funding for them to have driving lessons.

If you know of a Young Adult Carer, or someone who might be a carer, or want to get involved as a volunteer, then please get in touch with Kris Williams on 01539 815 979 or email her at kriswilliams@slcarers.org.uk

Carers Survey 2013 At South Lakeland Carers we are committed to offering quality support and services to carers.

We feel that it is important to monitor and evaluate the support we provide to ensure that we are meeting your needs wherever possible. Through understanding how our carers feel about the help we offer we can identify where we may need to change or improve our services.

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You will find a questionnaire enclosed with this newsletter which I would encourage you to complete if possible and return to us

by Friday 22 March 2013 in the Freepost envelope provided.

you may find it easier to complete the survey online at www.surveymonkey.com/s/N3FSX92 Your contributions will make a valuable difference to the work of South Lakeland Carers and will also help to develop services for carers locally.

For those of you who have access to a computer South Lakeland Carers

442

Carers have been assessed by us.

65

173

Carers have benefited from a total of 908 relaxation treatments

Carers have received a total of 203 sits from our Sitting & Befriending service

62

Carers have taken part in social outings

70

Young Carers have received support from us.

Over 1000 Carers have received support from us.

3 Residential trips and 4 day trips have been arranged for Young Carers

266

Over 60 Volunteers have helped us this year

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Support groups are in place across South Lakeland.

Contingency plans have been completed

56

Carers have received a total of 598 counselling sessions

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Events Calendar March

April

May

5th - Windermere/Ambleside Group 5th - Sedbergh/Kirkby Lonsdale Group 6th - Kendal Lunch Club

2nd - Windermere/Ambleside Group 2nd - Sedbergh/Kirkby Lonsdale Group 3rd - Kendal Lunch Club

1st - Kendal Lunch Club

13th - Kendal Group

10th - Kendal Group

8th - Kendal Group

20th - Kendal Group

17th - Kendal Group

15th - Kendal Group

26th - Grange Group

23rd - Grange Group

22nd - Kendal Group

27th - Kendal Group

24th - Kendal Group

28th - Grange Group

7th - Sedbergh/Kirkby Lonsdale Group 7th - Windermere/Ambleside Group

29th - Kendal Group

Carers Drop-In Centre: Eskdale House, Shap Road, Kendal - every Wednesday, 11.00 am- 1.00pm. Except on Lunch Club dates Grange Group Meetings: Hampsfell House Hotel, Grange - every 4th Tuesday in the month 10.30am - 12.30pm Sedbergh/Kirkby Lonsdale: United Reformed Church Hall, Main Street , Sedbergh every 1st Tuesday in the month, 2.00pm - 4.00pm Windermere/Ambleside: Langdale Chase Hotel - 1st Tuesday in the month 10.30am - 12.30pm.

Please note the venue changes for the Grange and Sedbergh groups, who have both recently moved to different premises.

Flower Arranging Class Nancy has organised for a lesson in flower arranging for the March support group in Grange. All welcome to come along on Tuesday 26 March at 10.30am, at the Hampsfell House Hotel. It is completely free and the flowers will be raffled at the end.

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Getting in touch You can get in touch with us if you have a problem and would like our advice.

You can also share your experiences, views opinions, recipes and anything else with us. This is your newsletter and we would love to hear from you.

01539 815970 admin@slcarers.org.uk South Lakeland Carers