Sheffield unpaid carers support plan pledges ‘a roadmap for change’
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A meeting of the council’s adult health and social care policy committee agreed to an updated delivery plan for the support services in place to help young people and adults who care for someone with an illness, frailty, disability, mental health problem or addiction who cannot cope without their support.
A report to the committee said: “Carers want actions, not just words, and the delivery plan provides a roadmap for that change over the next three years. ”
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Hide AdThe plan aims to make carers feel valued and supported to carry on their role for as long as they want to and provide help via a range of council, health and social services.
The plan aims to provide carers with good quality information and advice about them and the people they care for, the ability to take breaks from their responsibilities, to ensure their prospects in life are not affected and they are supported to look and after own physical and mental health and wellbeing.
‘Bold and ambitious’
Many have said that they are struggling with worse health following the pandemic, and the person they care for is also in worse health. The cost-of-living crisis is causing major worries.
The plan has been put together with input from carers and organisations that support them, such as Sheffield Young Carers and Sheffield Carers Centre, and is updating a strategy that was already in place.
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Hide AdCouncil strategic commissioning manager Mary Gardner told the committee she wanted the plan to be bold and ambitious: “Carers need to know what’s being done to help them feel valued and supported. We need to turn the strategy into reality and help carers live the life they want to live.”
She said that one problem was identifying carers because often people don’t recognise themselves in that role, so different organisations such as schools and healthcare teams can help with that.
Of an estimated 60-90,000 adult carers, only around 12-18 per cent are registered as carers. That figure falls to around 6-8 per cent of an estimated 7-10,000 young carers.