Spring 2013 Medway Newsletter

March 2013
Medway Edition
Carers FIRST in Kent & Medway are a charity supporting carers across Medway and West Kent. We provide
emotional and practical support, advice and information to support carers in their caring role. We provide
access to support groups, befriending, training, short breaks respite, activities, trips and events. Carers Support
Workers work within the community to allow greater interaction with carers , statutory services and other
voluntary agencies.
We support adult and young carers who look after their cared for person who, through ill health, disability,
frailty, mental health issues or substance misuse are unable to manage without support. Some carers will live
with their cared for person, others may not. We support young carers from the age of 5 to 18, then through
transition into adulthood. We have no upper age limit for the carers we support.
Are you facing a housing benefit shortfall?
The difference between the amount of housing benefit
you get and the amount of rent you have to pay is called a
shortfall. You’re expected to deal with any shortfall and
pay the difference yourself - and you might not get any
help from the council to do this. Recent changes to the benefits system
mean that the amount of housing benefit you receive might have gone
down over the last couple of years. More changes are on the way that
could mean you get even less housing benefit from April 2013.
If you rely on housing benefit to pay all the rent on your home, these
changes could mean that you will no longer get enough housing benefit
to pay the full rent every week.
Even if you pay only some of your rent with housing benefit, any further
reduction in the amount of housing benefit you receive could put a lot
of pressure on your finances.
It’s important to act straightaway if you’re facing a shortfall. If you
don’t, you could quickly get into rent arrears and risk losing your home.
If you don't know how your housing benefit will be affected, check with
Medway Council who will be able to explain the new rates to you.
Contents
Message from CEO
Young Carers information
Parent Carers information
Adult and Older Carers information
Carers Week information
Telephone Befriending Project
information
Diary Dates for March to July 2013
Our newsletter is developing in content and
size thanks to the feedback of our carers.
We try to include articles that give you
information and let you know how we have
been involved with carers. Please contact us if
you have any comments .
Carers FIRST in Kent & Medway contact information.
3,Canterbury Street, Gillingham, Kent, ME7 5TP
medwaycarerscentre@carersfirst.org.uk
01634 577340
www.medwaycarerscentre.org.uk
The office is open Monday to Thursday 9am—5pm and Friday 9am—4:30pm.
Our Young Carer, Parent Carer, Adult Carer, BME Carer, Mental Health Carer and Older Carer Support Workers
work mobile contact numbers are included where appropriate throughout this newsletter. Contact the Carer
Support Worker known to you directly or call the Carers Centre, we are here to help you in your caring role.
We welcome referrals from carers themselves directly and also through, schools, Social Services, Health Services
and other voluntary organisations. If you need advice about what happens once you have referred either
yourself or another person please call us on 01634 577340 where we will be happy to assist you.
Registered Charity Number: 1104884
Registered Company Number: 5070912
Message from Pete Turner, CEO
Can I take this opportunity to wish all our carers a happy new year in our first newsletter of 2013.
We held a number of events pre Christmas including our annual carol service at St Marks Church,
Canterbury Street. Well attended by carers and their families, staff and local MP, Rehman Chishti, it
was a very enjoyable event.
The full merger of Carers FIRST and Medway Carers Centre continues and we become one charity in
April 2013—Carers FIRST in Kent &Medway. This will in no way impact on our services to carers in Medway and
the news of our success in securing the Carer Support and Assessment contract for not only South West Kent,
but also Dartford, Gravesham and Swanley in the North West Kent provides stability for the charity as a whole. A
major part of winning that contract is our commitment to involve carers in the design and scrutiny of our
services, a model that is well developed in Medway.
We have carers on the Medway Carers Partnership Board, the Learning Disability Partnership Board, the
commissioning group for the Medway Carer contract, and also carers on interview panels for senior positions in
our charity. Carers are therefore represented at every level of strategic monitoring of services within Medway
and their contribution continues to be invaluable. We want to further develop carer involvement in the design
and delivery of our services across Kent and Medway. Our trustees have formulated a working group to look at
how we can best do this and we will be highlighting and consulting on these very important issues in the coming
weeks and months.
The 2011 census identified 25,038 carers in the Medway towns. We are keen that we reach as many of those
people as possible and make this centre as welcoming to everyone as it can be.
Benefits Changes: Don’t Fly Solo – Get Help!
The benefit system is changing. Instead of Disability Living Allowance, Income Support,
Family Credit, Housing Benefit and Council Tax Benefit and others we are familiar with,
we are facing Universal Credit.
Universal Credit is coming to Kent in stages from April 2013. Existing benefits will
either be scrapped (as in Disability Living Allowance) or changed and made part of the overall calculations in
Universal Credit.
Over the coming months, you will be faced with reviews of your benefits, along with the usual burden of
paperwork. At this stage nobody knows exactly what will be asked on the forms, but we will keep our eyes on it.
The best advice from now on is: if you get a review form, get help with it. If you are making a fresh claim for
anything, get help with it. We want people to get what they are due from the new system, and claim everything
they are entitled to.
We have noticed in recent months when people attempt review forms alone, there is a high rate of rejection or
reduction in benefits, and a high rate of cases being sent to appeal . Nobody wants to be faced with an appeal
tribunal unnecessarily, so reduce the risk of that by getting expert help with the initial application or review.
At Carers FIRST in Kent & Medway, we will be keeping up with the changes. If you have a form to do:
Don’t Fly Solo – Get Help! Contact your Carer Support Worker directly or our office on 01634 577340
Mr Beans and Norma’s Café Rochester
It is with regret that a decision has been taken to stop the drop ins at Mr Beans and Norma’s
Café on alternate Fridays. Mr Beans has ceased trading due to a sudden end of their lease,
additionally there has been very little uptake of the drop in service. However as always I am available on my
phone, I can come and visit you at home or meet with you individually in a café /at the office. Please call Bobbie
on 0782 734 3418 .
Carers get a free cinema ticket with the
Cinema Exhibitors Association card!
This is a national card showing that the holder is entitled to one free ticket for a
person accompanying them to the cinema meaning a carer can go free when
accompanying their cared for person.
The card is valid for 1 year from the date of issue. Printed application forms are available from cinemas across
the UK supporting this card or you can download an application form from www.ceacard.co.uk To apply for the
card you will need to submit proof to show that the person you care for meets one or more of the following
criteria:
a) Be in receipt of Disability Living Allowance or Attendance Allowance.
b) Be a registered blind person.
You will also need to supply a passport-sized photo with your application to appear on the card. There is a
processing fee of £5.50 per card. If you have any questions ring The Card Network on 0845 123 1292.
You shall go to the Ball!
An enjoyable afternoon was had by all on 3rd January when the Older Carers and
Angie Clemence met at the Chatham Central for the matinee performance of
Cinderella. The panto’s stars ‘Heather Trott’ from Eastenders and Paul Burling
were outstanding as was the whole cast, and their wit, charm and never ending
stream of innuendos gave the carers an afternoon of fun, laughter and plenty of
audience participation. In fact like Cinderella, we not only ‘went to the Ball’ but
‘we all had a Ball’. Please join us at future trips as we would love to see you.
Dementia Training
The 3 part Dementia Training sessions for carers, facilitated by Joan Devenny, Admiral Nurse, at the Carers
Centre in January proved to be a positive experience for all those who attended. The sessions were informative,
providing the carers with avenues of support they were not aware of and most importantly it was a safe
environment for carers to share their own personal journey of living with their cared for and drawing on each
other’s coping strategies. For further Dementia support see below.
Dementia Cafes & Support Groups in Medway facilitated by Sylvia Wolfson, Alzheimer’s Society, Contact
07557 111060
Cafes at The Harbour Room, Amherst Court, Palmerston Road, Chatham, ME4 6LU are held every 2 nd Friday of
the month between 1pm to 3pm.
Cafes at St. Paul’s Church, Long Catlis Road, Parkwood, Rainham, ME8 9PN are held every 1 st and 3rd Tuesday of
the month between 1pm to 3pm.
Carers Group at The Walter Brice Centre, Tilley Close, Hoo, Rochester, ME3 9AE is held on the 2 nd Wednesday of
the month between 10am to 12noon. Coming soon there will be a Peer Support Group starting at the Thorndike
Centre, Longley Road, Rochester. This Group will primarily be for newly diagnosed people.
For further information contact Angie Clemence, Carer Support Worker on 07774 553652.
Medway Carers Emergency Card
Contact the Carers Centre, 01634 577340, for more information about the Medway Carers
Emergency Card or email Judith.langridge@carersfirst.org.uk with your name, address and
telephone number requesting a Medway Carers Emergency Card application form.
Carers Week 2013 - 10th to 16th June—This year’s theme is ‘Prepared to Care’
Website: www.carersweek.org
Twitter: twitter.com/carersweek
Facebook: facebook.com/carersweek
The primary objectives of Carers Week are:
 recognising and celebrating the contribution that the UK’s six million carers make to those they care for
 raising the profile of carers and the awareness about the needs and role of carers; influencing and informing
opinion-formers and decision-makers (such as MPs and healthcare professionals) and helping to secure
increased resources for carers from central and local government
 identifying ‘hidden carers’ enabling them to access support and services
 encouraging local organisations to work together to promote recognition, support and services for carers
highlighting the support and services that Carers Week national partners offer to carers
Carers Week is also about celebrating the contribution that carers make to those they care for, bringing to the
fore the issues carers tell us are most important to them and reaching out to even more carers who currently
don’t know about or have access to the support and services available to them.
We will be having activities at Carers FIRST in Kent & Medway, Medway Carers Centre and will keep you
informed of developments. For further information call : 01634 577340
Diwali at Medway Carers Centre
Diwali (Deepawali) means a row of clay lamps.
Hindu –The Story of Rama and Sita: Lord Rama was a great warrior King who was
exiled by his father Dashratha, the King of Ayodhya, his wife Sita and his younger
brother Lakshman insisted going with him. In the year 13 Sita was kidnapped by
Demon King Ravana and Lord Rama had to go to war with him to free her. Lord Rama
returned to his Kingdom Ayodhya after 14 years of exile, after putting an end to the
demon Ravana of Lanka, who was a great Pundit, highly learned but still evil dominated his mind. After this
victory of Good over Evil, Rama returned to Ayodhya. In Ayodhya, people welcomed them by lighting rows of
clay lamps. So, it is an occasion in honour of Rama's victory over Ravana; of Truth's victory over Evil.
Sikh Festival Diwali: In Sikh culture Diwali is celebrated as the return of the sixth Guru, Guru Hargobind Ji from
the captivity of the city, Gwalior. To commemorate his undying love for Sikhism, the towns people lit the way to,
Harmandhir Sahib (referred to as the Golden Temple), in his honour.
Diwali was on 13th of November but here at Medway Carers Centre we celebrated it on 15th of November 2012.
We decorated the room for the occasion, refreshments were provided by the centre and carers also brought
food to share with others. 22 carers attended, all dressed in their best outfits, we sang and danced to folk music
and enjoyed Bhangra afterwards. Our CEO, Pete Turner joined us to welcome and thank all of the carers for
attending. Carers attending said it was welcoming, relaxing and enjoyable atmosphere and everyone enjoyed the
the festivities. Please join us for future events in the coming year to meet and relax with other carers. Maya
Medway Telecare Training
This is a community alarm system that supports people living in their
own to remain independent.
We have arranged training around this support system to be held at Medway Carers Centre on the 6 th March
2013 between 10am -12. The talk will be informative and help you assess the benefits for you and your cared for
person. Telephone us on 01634 577340 to book your place.
Useful Web Sites for Carers
In this newsletter we are using the ‘Useful Website’ section to alert you to a website
link that can make a real difference to carers for the future. The Joint Committee on
the Government’s draft Care and Support Bill, chaired by Paul Burstow MP, is
conducting pre-legislative scrutiny of the draft Bill and has set up a web forum to hear
the views of carers.
The Committee would like to hear about your experiences as a carer and what impact you think the
Government’s proposed legislation might have on your own situation, either positive or negative. Your
comments will help inform the recommendations the Committee makes to the Government in their report.
There are 3 key areas they invite you to comment on; Responsibilities of local authorities, Assessing needs and
Safeguarding adults at risk of abuse and neglect. Visit www.parliament.uk/business/committees/committees-az/joint-select/draft-care-and-support-bill/web-forum/ and make your views known at Government level.
Time to Talk?
We know from carer feedback how isolating your caring role can be. Sometimes it is difficult to get out of the
house for even half an hour and many carers are juggling jobs alongside their caring role.
Whilst we offer drop ins, coffee mornings and activities for carers that carers can attend are you aware that we
also offer a telephone befriending service where we can contact you on a regular basis? Your telephone
Befriender Volunteer will be a confidential and understanding listener, finding out how you are and, where
necessary, fielding any questions arising from the call to our team of Carer Support Workers.
Your Befriender Volunteer will call you on a prearranged day, either on your landline or
mobile, we can call you where ever you might be. It is a chance for you to ‘offload’ to someone
who can listen with a non judgemental ear and who is there for you. To find out more contact
the Carers Centre on 01634 577340. Sometimes having someone to listen is all you need
Manish Kaushik BME Eastern European Communities Carer Support Worker update.
I am continuing to see carers either for one to one support or to complete carers assessments. I am meeting
carers in cafes, clinics, or their other choice of location as I endeavour to reach out to ‘hidden carers’ in the
Eastern European community within Medway. I can also signpost carers, link carers together for peer support
and refer them onto other agencies as I support them in their caring role.
I am working with Partners within the Eastern European Community and Living Well to ensure Medway Carers
Centre’s services are available to all. Family Event March 24th 10am—3pm at Bishop of Rochester Academy
Chatham. We will be at this event with partner organisations including Medway Parents & Carers Forum t o meet
with parents and family carers of children with disabilities from the Eastern European Community. Please call
07914 365979 for more information. Please come along, we look forward to meeting you.
Adult Carers Staff Contact details
Contact the adult team for advice, support or information either at the office on 01634 577340 or by calling:
Bobbie - 0782 7343418 (Mon—Fri 9-5pm), bobbie.taiano@carersfirst.org.uk Adult and Mental Health Carers
Angie - 0777 4553652 (Mon/Tues or Thurs/Fri 9-5) angie.clemence@carersfirst.org.uk Adult and Older Carers
If there is no answer please leave a message and we will endeavour to call you back as soon as possible.
Maya and Manish, BME Carers, can be contacted through the office on 01634 577340 or via email at
maya.bangar@carersfirst.org.uk
manish.kaushik@carersfirst.org.uk
Aiming High in Medway
My name is Sylvia Baldock and I joined Aiming High Respite Service in December 2012.
Previously I had been working in the care sector for over seven years. My back ground was to
provide support service for disabled young adults and domiciliary care for elderly. I do enjoy the
challenges of my new post and find that everyone within the organisation is a great team to
work with, especially my support workers. At the moment I am working on long term projects
involving group activities, trips and trying out new exciting venues for the children we support.
Over the Christmas period some of our older children went to see “Cinderella” at the Central
Theatre, Chatham. “Cinders” was lovely, Buttons funny and the Prince…well…charming. But until this day I am
not sure who enjoyed this performance most, children or support workers? With lots of laughs, booing and snow
(yes that’s correct, snow!) everyone had a lovely afternoon.
Our younger children took part in helping Little Lost Frog to get back home on the stage of The Brook Theatre.
Children were attentive and very helpful, and not at all afraid of the naughty imp. We all enjoyed the show and
you will be pleased to know Little Frog has found his mum.
For Easter half term we have got range of activities Please book your places so you don’t miss out
03.04.13 Ice Skating
04.04.13 Little Potters Club
05.04.13 Disco Night
09.04.13 Horse Riding
11.04.13 Wingham Wild Life Trip
12.04.13 Diggerland Trip
Above dates may be subject to change.
These events are open to all children supported by Aiming High in Medway project. Places are limited so to book
your child’s place please call 01634 582132. Please note children under the age of 8 must be accompanied by a
parent on any group activity over 2hours in duration. There will be a small charge for these activities of £5 per
child.
If you need any further information please contact:
Service Manager Sue Ashburn or Team Lead Sylvia Baldock on 01634 582132.
Home and Community Respite Support Service
Are you a carer for a child or Adult, who is sick, frail or disabled, and are in receipt of
direct payments or are in the position to self fund? We would like to hear from you to
see how we can offer you valuable respite support.
We provide a regular, fully trained member of our support team to spend time with
your cared for, either within the home or taking them out of the home to enjoy an activity. You will be able to
have the reassurance that your cared for is safe and give you the opportunity to have a well deserved break from
your caring role. A chance to get out of the home, meet up with friends or enjoy a leisure pursuit even if it is only for a few hours a week. If you would like to find out more please call the Respite Service on 01634 582132
where Sue or Sylvia will be pleased to provide you with more information.
Parent Carer Project
50 Parent Carers attended a day on the Princess Pocahontas boat trip from Gravesend pier to the tower of
London. We were very lucky with the dry sunny weather but it was very cold . Aiming High staff supported the
families which enabled the Parent carers to have a break from their caring role. The captain gave a running
commentary of the river and its history. We then hired the boat privately so we had plenty of space to explore.
The day out was very worthwhile as some families made new friends and I myself met new Parent carers who
were new to Carers FIRST in Kent & Medway. Finally thank you for completing the evaluation forms on the
day ,its so important that we get your feedback.
On December 13th we had our first Parent Carer coffee drop in. Six carers attended had a cup of tea and mince
pie. Thanks to Fatima for providing lovely samosas. I hope we can all meet on a regular basis, so please check
your emails as I will be reminding you of the dates.
If you feel unable to attend our centre for our meetings please let me know and I can arrange to meet you at a
venue near you. We are hoping to plan more day trips out, and some ideas were given forward at our meeting.
Remember you can email and text me if you need 1-1 support . Emails and texts will follow shortly with
information and upcoming Parent Carer Events .
Tuesday 5th March 10am-12noon
Venue: Costa Coffee Rainham High Street
Tuesday March 26th 10am-12noon
Venue: Amherst Court Coffee Shop, Palmerston Road Chatham
My working hours are 15 hours a week, please contact me on: tracey.huzzey@carersfirst.org.uk
Tel : 07827 296199
OR
Young Carers– Having YOUR Say!
Recently I attended my first meeting as a new member of the Carers Partnership Board. It is good news that
Young Carers are included in the meetings, as your views can be given direct to the board. Some Young Carers
will be invited at least twice a year to meetings held during school holidays . Before those meetings I will contact
you and we will hold our own Young Carers pre-meeting so you can prepare your ideas and concerns that you
would like to take to the board. Exciting times ahead as we now know Young Carers can make changes for you
and other families. After your previous consultation, Free gym passes were agreed to be given to Young Carers.
The Carers Partnership Board meet every two months, the board is made up of members from various
backgrounds, Medway Council , Health NHS, family carers, Crossroads CEO, Carers First in Kent and Medway.
Please text ,email me any issue or concerns around your caring role. Our mission is to lobby and advocate to gain
recognition for family carers. Watch out for more updates in the next newsletter. Tracey
YC Schools Project
This year we are continuing to work within most of the schools in Medway to provide support
advice and information to new and existing YC’s. This year our aim is to get into more primary
schools so we can identify and support earlier.
If you feel your school would benefit from our service please feel free to pass on the below
details to your Head teacher .
YOUNG CARER TEAM We have a dedicated team that work with our Young Carers. If you would like to speak to them, please contact
them using the details below.
Beth Love (Team Lead) 07827 361019 email: beth.love@carersfirst.org.uk
Tracey Huzzey 0782 7296199
email: tracey.huzzey@carersfirst.org.uk
Holly Smith 0782 7296340
email: holly.smith@carersfirst.org.uk
Lucy Collins 0782 7298268
email: lucy.collins@carersfirst.org.uk
Young Carers Christmas Party
This year we had a huge party at The Corn Exchange Rochester to wish all our Young Carers a Merry Christmas.
50 Young Carers attended and had lots of fun dancing and playing games with the DJ, watching magic tricks and
having balloon models made by our Magician Marley and a special appearance from Father Christmas with a
large sack of presents.
All Young Carers were a credit to the project and we would like to thank you all for attending and ending 2012 on
a high. Here’s to an even better 2013 as we have lots more fun things planned for you all.
Even two of Father Christmas’ Elves turned up!
Christmas Donations
The Young Carers Team would like to thank The Ivy and Jane Charitable Trust for funding our fantastic
Christmas party this year as well as many more of our activities over 2012-2013
The following people also made generous donations for the Christmas party. All were greatly received by our
Young Carers and made the raffle very exciting.
Young Carers Support Groups Young Carers Project have set up some new groups in Strood and Rochester and its been
great to see more and more of you coming along to those. Some YC’s have enjoyed cooking
at Strood Youth Club and might I say we have quite a few Gordon Ramsey’s on the project.
We made some yummy cupcakes with the best toppings. Some other YC’s enjoyed Rock
Climbing, you all got stuck in so well done to all who came along. Before Christmas lots of
YC’s came along to Silverblades and joined Lucy and I on the ice. Much fun was had by all.
If you want to come to the groups please see the group dates leaflet and contact me on
07827 296340/ holly.smith@carersfirst.org.uk
Young Carers– FORTHCOMING ACTIVITIES
Monkey Bizz in Strood for 5-11 years - Wednesday 3rd April 1pm-3pm
Go Karting Buckmore Park 8-16 years – Wednesday 10th April 1pm-4pm
Due to the limited number of places on each activity please ring Lucy Collins on 07827298268 to register your
child’s interest on the activities. We will then let you know in advance as to whether they have a confirmed spot
on the activity. More details on activity will be given nearer the time.