Cash For ADCA Carers

1 Go to website and scroll down until video window appears:

2 Click on menu icon at top right

3 DOUBLE CLICK on 3rd item

4 Immediately dismiss the menu by clicking on the X

5 Be patient while video loads and starts playing (it's a bit slow!)

6 Select Full Screen view if desired.

What happened next

Carers across Cheshire East viewed and ranked presentations in order of deservingness and their votes were added up by Carers Hub Cheshire East (so-called 'participatory budgeting').

Of course, all ADCA's Carers' Support Group members ranked ADCA first, but how would carers elsewhere in Cheshire East vote when they saw this moving presentation and learned of our plans to organise 20 highly varied breaks for our carers across the year; develop our popular Friday Fun Games; expand telephone support for isolated carers; recruit more befrienders to enable carers to come to group meetings and activities; and set up a prescription collection service for carers stuck at home?

Hallelujah, enough carers elsewhere ranked us highly enough for us to get what we asked for on 23 March!

Remember 23 March? Of course you do. That was the day when that thing with the funny name got properly in the way...

So what's happening now?

Not a lot of carers' breaks, obviously!

Instead, Lynn Morear, our lead Carers Support Worker, stays in regular contact with more than 70 carers by phone herself, while also helping to train up volunteers for ADCA's Coronavirus Home Support Service link – https://adca.audlem.org/covid-19-2coronavirus-home-support-scheme.html in how to provide telephone support. She is also involved in setting up the prescription collection service. As these activities fall within the grant criteria, we are able to use some of the funds for this purpose.

If you are a carer and need support during this Coronavirus emergency, don't hesitate to contact ADCA's helpline (07984 785907) or call Lynn Morear directly (07376 070586).

If you know of a carer who is struggling in the present situation, please put them in touch!

Carers' breaks in the time of coronavirus

Carers are particularly heavily impacted by the constraints of our coronavirus-stricken world, and need 'a break' more than ever. Lockdown will end, but things won't be the same, that's for sure.

We'd love to hear new ideas from existing carers, new carers, and everyone about what sort of Carers' Breaks we might organise in the months ahead, while respecting coronavirus guidelines. We expect that social distancing and small numbers will feature in such guidelines for quite some time.

Last year we took carers on canal trips, and out to lunch, and around lovely gardens, and away for spa breaks, and for cream teas, and on craft courses and onto the bowling green (at Audlem's very own bowling club). Some of these things just won't be possible now, for an indeterminate length of time. What could we do instead?

You can email us on adca.audlem@gmail.com and use the subject: Carers Break Ideas

We have the funds, but our previous plans need some rethinking!

Help!