Carers - Kilwinning Medical Practice

North Ayrshire Carers Centre
CarersNews
Unity Enterprise
North Ayrshire Carers Centre
174 High Street, Irvine KA128AN
Tel 01294 311333
northayrshire.carers@unity-enterprise.com
I S S U E :
2 0 1 6
/
( J A N U A R Y )
Easter Fun Day
Friday 18th March / 10am—1pm
This Spring we have planned a fun morning of
Easter activities and lunch for Carers. If
interested, then call now to reserve your place.

Easter Egg Decorating

Fun Easter Activities

Lunch & Refreshments Served
Cost: £3
DEMENTIA AWARENESS
SESSION
Friday 26th February
9.30am—12pm
A Dementia Awareness
Session will take place in
the Carers Centre on the
above date. If interested
in coming along then
please contact us on
01294 311 333, as places
will be limited.
Creative Breaks
grants are available
to those Carers in North Ayrshire who
meet the criteria. The grants can be used
to provide a personalised, tailored choice
of short break, e.g. a leisure activities,
gym membership, season ticket to local
attraction, or on some occasions a short
break away from home. Staff members
will be able to assist you with choosing
your short break and completing the
Opening Hours
Monday - Friday
9 am - 4 pm
If you require an
appointment out with
normal office hours,
then please
telephone the Carers
Centre on 01294
311333 in order to
arrange this.
Home Visits can also
be arranged.
application form with you.
The maximum grant award is set at £300,
however the final amount awarded will
be at the discretion of an independent
panel.
Please Note: Certain criteria must be met
in order to qualify for this grant. Please
contact us if you are interested in
receiving more information.
Therapies—Price Increase
From week commencing 1st February 2016, the cost of a therapy will increase from £3 to £5 per session.
First three therapies will continue to be offered free of charge.
We apologise for any inconvenience this may cause .
Keep up to date with Carers Centre
Activities by following NORTH AYRSHIRE
CARERS CENTRE on Facebook.
Carers Events & Outings
BARGE TRIP
Carers enjoyed a great day out on the Unity Barges. Many of the
Carers even got a go at steering the barges along the waterway at
Auchinstarry, on the Forth and Clyde Canal.
We were joined by KA Leisure who offered
Health Checks to Carers and provided lots
of great advice and tips to those looking to
follow a healthier and more balanced
lifestyle. Taster therapy sessions and
beauty treatments were also offered as well as a delicious lunch.
BRITAIN’S BEST BREAKFAST is an awareness and fund raising initiative. For the second year
running North Ayrshire Carers Centre took part in this event and we would therefore like to
thank all those who came along and supported the event.
A further thank you must go to the Health and Social
Care Partnership at North Ayrshire Council who raised
over £120 from their morning tea trolley round.
Thank You !
CHRISTMAS LUNCH RAFFLE: As always, we are sincerely grateful for all those raffle prizes kindly
donated by carers and local businesses. This resulted in yet another successful raffle. An additional
thanks to Sainsbury’s, Morrison’s, Boots, Frankie & Benny’s Restaurant and Marion Bennett Hair Salon
who all donated prizes.
PAGE
PAGE
Christmas Lunch 2015
3
The Carers Lunch at the Lauriston Hotel was a great event for those who
managed along - so a big thank you to all.
A further thank you to the professionals and dignitaries who came along
and joined us for lunch.
Craft Sale
THE INTERNATIONAL
CRAFT & HOBBY FAIR
Carers from both North and
South Ayrshire headed to the
SECC in Glasgow to attend the
Craft Fair. It was an amazing
day with loads of interesting
and inspirational ideas.
The Craft Group who meet in
the centre every first Tuesday of
the month have raised over
£250 from craft sales. A
marvellous well done to
everyone who helped achieve
this fantastic amount.
A Festive Lunch for Arran Carers
also took place at Auchrannie.
We would like to take this
opportunity to thank them for
making it a great day and well
worth the bumpy boat journey
See next page for dates of upcoming craft groups. The group is
open to all those interested in taking up a craft, regardless of experience or ability. The emphasis is more on fun and time out!
SHOPPING DAY OUT AT LIVINGSTON
DESIGNER OUTLET
AGE
3
Carers headed to Livingston for the day for
some serious retail therapy at the Designer
Outlet Centre.
3
Discounted Membership
For Carers
As a new year beckons, this is a
reminder to our registered Adult
Carers that KA Leisure are continuing
to offer Adult Carers living within
North Ayrshire the opportunity to
access
discounted
Multi
Use
Subscription.
With your help, the Carers Centre hopes
to produce a book of Recipes.
Whether it’s a recipe that has been
passed down through the generations
or just a personal favourite, then let us
know. We would be happy to publish it
in the recipe book.
Each subscription will allow the Adult
Carer to access unlimited swimming,
unlimited access to the gym and
fitness classes plus discounted access
to table tennis and badminton and
available in all KA Leisure facilities and
sites across the local authority.
We look forward to hearing from you!
The discounted rate for registered
Adult Carers is £15 per month
(normally £34 per month).
Carers Drop-in Sessions: KILWINNING
Ayrshire College, Kilwinning Campus (Lecture Theatre 4)
10am—12pm
North Ayrshire
Tues 12th Jan
and
Tues 8th Mar
No Appointment
Necessary
Carers
To access this offer from KA Leisure,
contact North Ayrshire Carers Centre
for a Carers Card which you will need
when setting up your KA Leisure
Subscription.
When setting up your subscription
you will also be able to set up one
additional adult from the same
address . This will be offered at the
same Carers Discount rate of £15.
Craft & Chat
Carers Centre
Monthly:
Every 1st Tuesday
1.30pm— 3pm
Reminiscence Group
 5th January
PAGE
 2nd February
 1st March
4
 5th April
 3rd May
Carers Centre
Monthly:
Every 3rd Tuesday
1.30pm— 3pm
- 19th January
- 16th February
- 15th March
- 19th April
- 17th May
PAGE
National Autistic Society

Benefits Advice including benefits
maximisation and help with form filling

Advice on Carers Rights

Relaxation in the form of alternative
therapies and beauty treatments

Outreach including alternative therapies

Counselling

Access to funding opportunities

Training and Workshops

Home Visits

Evening Appointments

Support Groups
NAS Support Services available or an
opportunity to meet like-minded
people then

Advocacy

1:1 Support

Information on Carers issues
contact Clare on 01563 520317 or

Young Carers Support and Groups
The National Autistic Society’s One Stop
Shop – Ayrshire will be operating an
appointment based session in North
Ayrshire Carers Centre with limited
appointments available to carers.
The Ayrshire One Stop Shop offers a wide
range of ‘all under one roof’ autism
support and information services from a
single, local location. If you would like to
find out more about local autism
information relevant to you and your
family, learn more about links to the
AyrshireOss@nas.org.uk to make an
appointment.
PLEASE DO NOT HESITATE TO CONTACT US
FOR ANY HELP, ADVICE OR SIGNPOSTING YOU
MAY REQUIRE.
FOR THE ATTENTION OF ALL CARERS
PAGE
5
A CHANGE IN CIRCUMSTANCES
Please advise the Carers
Centre of any changes to
your circumstances, i.e. change of
address, contact details, caring
responsibilities or other
information you think may
be relevant.
CONTACT US ON:
01294 311333
REVIEW QUESTIONNAIRES
Review letters and questionnaires are
periodically sent to all Carers registered
with ourselves. This is a requirement of
North Ayrshire Council and is to ensure
the health and well-being of Carers
within North Ayrshire is at an optimum
and support is in place where most
needed. We therefore thank you for
taking the time to respond to these.
5
North Ayrshire Carers Centre can
help you with the following:
PAGE
Did You Know?
5
DVD - In Production
A group of our Young Carers have been busy working with a film producer to make
a promotional DVD, the purpose of which is to raise awareness of Young Carers in
NORTH
AYRSHIRE
YOUNG
GROUPS
our
communities
and the issues
that theyCARERS—
may come across.
The DVD will be ready
for production nearer the end of March 2016 and will be screened in all nine
Below are some recent photographs of the children
secondary schools in North Ayrshire, as well as to other agencies and professionals..
Young Adult Carer
Respite Break - Peebles
enjoying group time, including a visit from the local
Police.
Please note that all YC groups are due to restart in
January following the Festive Break. Letters have
been issued with the relevant dates enclosed..
In November Young Adult Carers had the
opportunity to attend a weekend respite break in
Peebles, where they took part in a variety of
workshops which focused on interview and
presentation skills. All who took part in this exercise did
extremely well and should be very proud of
themselves. We would like to take this opportunity to
thank the Carers Trust Events Fund for enabling us
to carry this training out, as we were awarded
funding specifically for this event.
PAGE
6
PAGE
Christmas Activities
We therefore had a range of activities take place from an adventure outing to Pirate Pete’s, trips to Lazer
Quest and Bowling etc. The Young Adult Carers opted to enjoy a night in the Carers Centre playing traditional
party games and followed this with a Chinese Meal.
We at the Young Carers are most
grateful to the Annick Spiritual
group for their kind donation,
which they have presented to the
Carers Centre on a yearly basis, in
Memory of Debbie Collins who was
a former Carer.
A further thanks must go to all
those at the Family Nurse
Partnership, Child Health
Department at Ayrshire Central
Hospital, who carried out a series
of fundraisers within their team
and very kindly donated over
£100.00 to our Young Carers
Service. Special thanks to Marylyn
Gibson for organising the event.
Sheila & Deborah
7
Each of the Young Carers Groups chose their own Christmas Activity and needless to say thoroughly enjoyed
the outcome.
PAGE
8
alternative THERAPIES
SUPPORT groups
Our Support Groups are set in an informal and relaxed
environment. They can offer a wide range of help and support
to Carers.
ARRAN:
Ormidale Sports Pavillion, Brodick
11am - 12.45pm
Next scheduled meetings:
Wednesday 3rd February, Wednesday 2nd March,
No Meeting April due to Easter Break. The venue for meeting on 4th
May has still to be confirmed.
KILBIRNIE: Social Work Offices, Craigton Rd, Kilbirnie
Monthly—First Thursday of the Month
10am—12pm
Next scheduled meetings:
Thursdays— 4th February, 3rd March, 7th April, 5th May
LARGS: Brooksby Resource Centre, Brisbane, Largs
Massage & *Beauty Treatments
Every Tue 10am—12pm
Every Wed 10am —12pm
*Every Wed 1.30m—3.30pm
Every Thurs 1.30pm—3.30pm
Irvine:
Carers Centre
174 High St,
Irvine
Kilbirnie:
Massage
Monthly: Every 1st Thursday
10am—12 pm
Social Work Offices
Craigton Rd
Largs:
Massage
Monthly: Every 1st & 4th Wed,
10am—12pm
Brooksby Centre
Brisbane Road
 Largs group meets 3 times monthly – every first, second and
fourth Wednesday of the month, 10am – 12pm.
 Staff from the Carers Centre attend on the second Wednesday only
of each month
 If you wish to speak to a member of staff on a one to one basis,
then this can be arranged by calling us on 01294 311 333.
THREE TOWNS: Ardeer, Ardrossan and Saltcoats
Ardeer: Neighbourhood Centre, Shore Road, Stevenston.
(Please note that this group is Carer led, Carers Centre Staff attend
every second month only)
Monthly—Third Monday of the month,
10.00am- 12.00pm
Next scheduled meetings:
Mondays—18th Jan, 15th Feb, 21st March, 18th April, 16th May
Ardrossan: Civic Centre, Ardrossan
(Please note that this group is Carer led,
no Centre Staff in attendance)
Monthly—First Monday of the month
10.00am- 12.00pm
Next scheduled meetings
Mondays—1st February, 7th March, 4th April, 2nd May
Saltcoats: Saltcoats Library, Springvale Place
Saltcoats:
Massage
Monthly: Every 2nd Monday
10am—12pm
Saltcoats Library
Springvale
Arran: We very much regret that we can no
longer offer therapies in Arran. This is due to a
poor uptake of the service but will be reviewed at
a future date.
Therapies are available to book at both the centre
and at the outreach locations as listed on this
page. Each therapy lasts 30 minutes.
First three therapies are free, and £3 thereafter
(rising to £5 from February). Please note that your
first appointment will include a consultation.
Contact us on 01294 311333 to make your appointment.
Monthly—Second Monday of the month.
Staff attend these monthly meetings.
10.00am- 12.00pm
Next scheduled meetings:
Mondays 11th January, 8th February, 14th March, 11th April, 9th May
CANCELLATIONS
If for any reason you need to cancel
your appointment, then please call us to
let us know by contacting us on
For Craft Group and Reminiscence Group
details, please refer to Page 4.
01294 311 333.
Even last minute cancellations
can be filled.
Unity Enterprise is a Registered Charity (SC20039)