|
NEWSLETTER/CYLCHLYTHR
Powys Carers Service Newsletter - Summer 2004 - Page:
1 - 2-
3- 4-
5- 6-
7
Directors Welcome
 |
Hello, and welcome
to the first edition of Powys Carers Service newsletter. It
has been an exciting six months for us as a developing team
and a lot has been achieved. We now have outreach workers for
both adult and young carers working across the county and they
are contactable via post, phone or internet. By working in partnership
with both Social Services and the Local Health Board we aim
to be able to provide you with a comprehensive core service.
There were a few problems along the way, setting up systems,
employing staff, but now we can look forward to a positive future
working to help support you as carers wherever in Powys you
may live. The main office is now up and running to support |
the staff and to answer your queries as best we
can, so I look forward to hearing from you.
In this summer edition we take a closer look at carers week, the main
purposes behind it, which famous faces are helping to endorse it and
inviting you to attend the activities that we are organising across
the county. We will also be introducing our staff team to you, letting
you know a bit more about what they do in your local community and
providing you with details on contacting them. The government has
passed the Equal Opportunities Bill through to the House of Lords
and we’ll be looking at how this affects carers and employers
across Wales. Our young carers will be talking about their trip to
the Blue Planet over Easter and expressing their views.
We will also be introducing you to our new administration worker Anne
O’Brien and letting you know what she will be doing to help
support you.
As this is the first newsletter we hope you will let us know what
you think and send in any letters that you would like to share with
other carers across the county, plus any suggestions about future
articles. This is your newsletter and we want you to be proud of it.
I hope you enjoy our first edition and we look forward to sending
out more information to you over the coming months.
Kate Young- Director, Powys Carers Service.
The Chair’s comments
A very warm welcome to all of you to our first Powys Carers Service
Newsletter. As many of you will know we are a new organisation unique
in providing services for adult and young carers under single management,
through two teams of experienced outreach workers operating across
the whole of the county supported by our Director Kate Young and
her administration team based in Llandrindod Wells. Our services
are available to you in your community wherever you live in Powys
and our outreach workers will support your individual needs. After
extensive research, involving many of you as carers, conducted two
years ago on behalf of Social Services, Powys Local Health Board,
Powys Association of Voluntary Organisations, Princess Royal Trust
For Carers, Carers Wales and the three carers centres, this was
deemed the most appropriate way to bring high quality support services
to carers in a large rural area such as Powys. We will continue
to work closely together, along with yourselves, to ensure that
as carers you have the support you need to fulfil your caring role,
to look after your own health and well-being and to achieve your
individual goals in life.
What an honour it was to have The Princess Royal launch Powys Carers
Service in January. I know that many of you had the opportunity
to talk with her and found her very knowledgeable and empathetic
to your concerns. I am delighted that her Lady in Waiting and Lord
Lieutenant for Powys, The Hon. Mrs. Shan Legge-Bourke has agreed
to become our President. Along with an experienced Board of Trustees,
which I have the privilege to Chair, and a skilful and energetic
workforce we are all committed to working with you to improve your
situation. We are looking for additional Trustees, especially carers,
so please get in touch if you would like to know more about this
aspect of our work. We hope that through this newsletter you will
feel able to make comments and suggestions for future use.
We will look forward to hearing from you. Meanwhile, enjoy this
edition. My very best wishes to you all, Gloria Jones Powell Chair,
Powys Carers Service.
Unified
THE COUNCIL IS LAUNCHING THE UNIFIED ASSESSMENT THROUGHOUT POWYS
We have been told that the unified assessment is not a replacement
for the carers assessment, but it is an assessment for the cared
for or service user. However, there is a small section within it
that will help to identify carers who are not yet registered with
Social Care Services. The unified assessment aims to promote a ‘person
centred approach’ where information is only gathered once,
helping to get the service user the services that are most appropriate
to them through one information form. It’s main aim, in theory,
is to prevent people being serially assessed and therefore to make
the process more user friendly and systematic.
The Welsh Assembly Government brought in the need for a Unified
Assessment tool, but without guidelines, so each local authority
is currently developing its own form for use. At the moment it has
been suggested that Community Nurses take the form forward in a
pilot across the county.
When we have more information about the form we will update all
of you about its relationship to the carers assessment.
In the meantime, we have been asked by Mick Collins from Social
Care Services to identify a carer who would be willing to attend
a couple of meetings looking at the unified assessment and the carers
assessment together, to help ensure that carers’ views are
taken onboard during this next stage of development. There would
be money available to support you with transport or respite costs
while you attend these meetings. If you are interested in helping
us in this way and putting forward the views of carers within the
local community, please get in touch and let us know.
For more Information you can contact the main office on 01597 823800.
|
