CALL A CARER 2020-21

Manchester Carers Centre recognised the immense stress and isolation Carers were experiencing looking after shielding and vulnerable adults and children at home in a pandemic. It is well documented how the effects of caring can impact on Carers’ own health and wellbeing and the situation for Carers was serious. The impact of the Covid-19 pandemic with repeated lockdowns and restrictions took a further toll on Carers mental and physical wellbeing and one of our key priorities this year has been to adapt and introduce services to support Carers through this crisis. We actively fundraised from a range of supporters to develop our capacity to deliver a Call a Carer emotional support service to Carers. This was a listening ear and a safe place for Carers to share their anxieties and needs with experienced and supportive staff. The uptake and feedback of the service was heartening, only due to the generous support of all our independent funders, we were able to collectively deliver this service to 294 different cohorts of Carers in this year. This was a preventative service, to arrest the deterioration of Carers mental health and to support them to implement some good strategies to sustain them. Our services provide Carers with the opportunity to recharge their batteries and take care of themselves too. Caring can be very rewarding and valuing Carers contributions is really important, but delivering services that assists stress management and provide coping strategies enables Carers health and wellbeing to be prioritised.