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Carers Rights Day 2020
Come along and join us at our Carers Rights Day Virtual Coffee Morning on
Thursday 26th November 2020
10.30 – 12.00
Bring a cup of tea or coffee along to our information event. We will have guest speakers talking on topics such as benefits, advocacy, assistance available with improving your computer knowledge including sending emails and using the internet, carers assessments, support from your GP practice and the Warm Homes Scheme and we will finish off with a fun quiz. Email [email protected] to get your Zoom code.
Carers Passport Launch November 2020
VASL, Support for Carers are pleased to announce the launch of our Carers Passport.
This is an ID card for carers and will be recognised around Leicester, Leicestershire and Rutland. It will aid easy recognition of carers in a variety of settings and enable access to services and support.
It’s available as a wallet sized card, downloadable onto your smartphone or with a lanyard if you would prefer.
At Support for Carers, we recognise the difficulties and challenges that carers are facing on a daily basis and the importance of carer recognition has been highlighted even more so with the current coronavirus situation.
We understand that carer recognition is key to ensuring you receive the help and support you need at the right time to support you in your caring role. Through provision of the carers passport, this will aid in that recognition.
Please contact us on 01858 468543 if you would like further information, alternatively please follow this link to find out more https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BIZtF4xquc0&t=4s
A message from Kerry Turnbull Support for Carers Service Manager
“I would personally like to thank the team for all their hard work and dedication in getting this off the ground. Thank you to all the carers that have had involvement with the carers passport, we would not have been able to do this without your vital input. Thank you."
We know at Support for Carers the difficulty carers face on a day to day basis, especially through this pandemic. We were overwhelmed by calls from carers saying they had no proof to show who they were and could not access supermarkets at the vulnerable time slots in order to get their shopping, for example. Carers were also worried about visiting their cared for to provide support. As soon as this was brought to our attention we instantly used our carers emergency card as a form of ID which worked well as a temporary measure at that time.
We learned very quickly that our carers need a form of ID, to be recognised for the vital support they provide, to raise awareness of their caring role and get the help and advice needed. A Carers Passport would enable carers to do just that, as you will see the carers passport has a key in the design, it's key to unlocking the doors for carers so they can be recognised and get the advice and support they need.
For all of our carers that are registered with us at Support for Carers you will be receiving it shortly in the post. If you would prefer it to be emailed so you can download it on your phone let us know by emailing the team at [email protected]
Or alternatively if you would like to apply for a carers passport please give the team a call on 01858 468543
We look forward to hearing from you
New evening support group for carers starts 22 July
Starting Wednesday 22nd July and then every fourth Wednesday of the month, join us on Zoom for our brand new Evening Carers Support Group at 7pm. This is open to anyone caring for an adult in Leicestershire.
We only give out the access codes for our Carers Support Groups to carers who are already registered with us, so please email [email protected] to receive the link. We would be delighted to see you.
Coronavirus Update Joint statement
Coronavirus Update Joint statement Maureen O’Malley –Charity Manager and Linda Jones- Chair of VASL Trustee Board
VASL is a local charity based in Market Harborough, providing services and projects to improve the lives of people in our community.
These include support for family carers, young carers, older people who are lonely and isolated, providing volunteer transport to get people out and about, and activities and information to increase mental well-being.
We are a volunteer-involving organisation and most of our work is delivered by trained volunteers.
We are currently taking the necessary immediate and longer-term steps to support and protect our clients, volunteers, staff and partners from the effects of the Coronavirus outbreak, which is happening in the UK, Europe and around the World.
Our focus is to keep our services running, particularly those supporting vulnerable people: such as those using our carers support, mental health support, befriending services, and community transport.
At present, our priority is ensuring staff can run our critical services – Support for Carers, Young Carers, My Mind Matters, Community Champions, and VASL Community Transport.
VASL, like any organisation, has a duty of care towards the staff that work for the charity, our volunteers, and to the people that use our services. We have taken the step of temporarily closing our headquarters at Torch House and making some adjustments to the way we work and the services that we offer.
- VASL staff will be working from home
- VASL offices based at Torch House will be closed with immediate effect.
We are:
- Looking at how we can protect the most vulnerable in our community
- Minimising meetings in line with Government guidance
- Cancelling all public events, groups, and gatherings, such as VASL Young Carers Group, Community Champions gatherings, and Carers groups.
- Minimising face-to-face contact with vulnerable individuals ie. persons over 70 years old and those that we are aware may have underlying health issues
We will be:
- maintaining VASL services wherever possible
- Continuing to offer support via the telephone, email, and social media
- Liaising with other local groups and organisations to offer advice and support to the community in the coming weeks.
We are still in the early days of the Coronavirus outbreak within the UK and things will become clearer regarding the needs, working methods, and services that we can offer. We will post regular updates on our website to keep you informed.
In the meantime, a summary of our services is as follows:
Support for Carers
Telephone: 01858 468543
Email: [email protected]
Young Carers
Tel: 01858 439268
Email: [email protected]
My Mind Matters
Tel: 01858 411383
Email: [email protected]
Community Champions
Tel: 01858 439262
Email: [email protected]
VASL Transport Scheme
Tel: 01858 468499
Email: [email protected]
VASL main contact details:
Tel: 01858 433232
Email: [email protected]
Further reading
Read the latest Government guidance at www.gov.uk/coronavirus
Carer Groups Postponed
Kerry Turnbull our Support for Carers Leicestershire Manager has made the decision today that our carers groups across the County will be postponed until further notice due to the Coronavirus. This includes the carers café at Waitrose in Market Harborough. We do apologise for the inconvenience however we recognise our Carers are already looking after our most vulnerable people in our community and their own health is very important to us.
I would also like to add that our telephone advice and support line is and will be in operation, Monday to Friday 9am – 5pm if anyone would like to contact us for advice, information and support then please give the team a call on 01858 468543 we are her to help.
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