Archive Council News

This page is a news release published by Wrexham County Borough Council.
Content Author: pressoffice@wrexham.gov.uk

02 June 2009

National Carers Week - June 8 - 14

A ‘Q&A’ session with a panel of experts is one of the events planned for Carers in Wrexham as part of the National Carers Week celebrations.

Carers Week, which will be held from June 8 – 14, aims to highlight and celebrate the incredible contribution that carers make, sharing the positive experiences as well as the more difficult. It is estimated that six million people across the UK provide unpaid care to someone they know.

Highlights from the week will include a special ‘Question Time’ session where carers and members of the public will be able to put their questions forward to a panel of experts at Capel y Groes on Friday June 13 at 11am – 1pm. Sitting on the panel will be Andrew Figiel, (Chief Social Care Officer for Wrexham Council), Mark Jones (Head of Service- lead for Carers), Damien Keogh (Welfare Rights), the lead councillor for Social Care and a member of the Wrexham Local Health Board. Questions can be submitted beforehand by emailing carers@avow.org or by telephone on 01978 318812.

Other highlights include several carers drop in meetings throughout the week; the first at Wrexham Library on Monday June 8, from 10am- 12pm. Care officers from Wrexham Carers Service will be on hand, along with other professionals, to offer advice, support and guidance to carers in the County Borough. Carers will also have the opportunity to be pampered by students from Yale who will be providing a variety of beauty and therapeutic treatments.

Wrexham Council will also be introducing ‘suggestion’ boxes into council buildings and local libraries during the week. Here members of the public will be able to post any questions of concerns they might have regarding care services in the area.

Other activities during the week including a family picnic at Ty Mawr County Park on Saturday June 14. The picnic is open to all and there will be a number of activities for all the family to take part in. There will also be information stalls on Queens Square during the week.

The new Mayor of Wrexham, Cllr Arwel Jones will also be supporting Carers week by attending a special reception for local carer’s at the Memorial Hall on Wednesday.

The work carers undertake is vital. By providing unpaid care for someone they know who is ill, frail or disabled, they save the UK economy an incredible £87 billion. Despite this - and the fact that 3 in 5 people will be carers at some point in their lives - carers often face disadvantage and a lack of recognition in all areas of their lives.

The main consequence of this lack of recognition is that carers suffer more than they need to. Carers struggle with their finances (Carers Allowance at £50.55 is the lowest benefit of its kind), health, job, social life and general wellbeing.

Carers Week will work to combat this by highlighting and celebrating the incredible contribution that carers make, sharing the positive experiences as well as the more difficult.

Andrew Figiel, Chief Social Care Officer for Wrexham Council said:

“Carers are often the un-sung heroes with their fantastic work going unnoticed. They are truly indispensable. National Carers Week aims to highlight and celebrate their efforts, it is important that they receive as much support as possible. Carers invest so much energy and commitment, and the work they do is incredible. With the week long events in Wrexham, we will be doing all we can to ensure that everyone is made aware of the vital role they play in society.

“Improving support services for carers is one of the top priorities for Social Care services this year and we will be continuing to work with carers on the improvements needed".

For further information about Carers Week, visit www.avow.org or call 01978 318812.

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