Estuary
League of Friends
“working
to improve the quality of life of those in need of care, comfort and support
in our community”
First, what do we mean by a carer?
A carer is someone who looks after a friend or family member who is frail or has a long-term illness or disability (whether physical or otherwise), and who wouldn't be able to manage on their own. The carer might, or might not, live at the same address as the person they care for, and can be any age (including quite small children).
The key point is that carers are not paid for their caring work; they do it out of love, commitment or duty. People who do get paid for caring are Care Workers, not carers!
Anyone in our area who is a carer - or someone further a field who cares for someone in our area - can come to us for emotional support and for information on a range of things that could help them. Examples are: advice on welfare benefits; getting in touch with specialist organisations (for example, those with expertise in particular medical conditions); and help in dealing with health and social care professionals (advocacy) on matters such as hospital discharge, residential care and special needs assessments.
We run a monthly Carers' Support Group in Topsham on the third Tuesday afternoon in the month, and new members would be very welcome.
If any of this could be useful to you or someone you know, speak to our Carers' Support Worker, Vanessa Langley, who will arrange a home visit if appropriate to find out how we can be of help.