More support for carers in Chippenham

Wiltshire Health and Care in partnership with Carer Support Wiltshire have launched four new services at Chippenham Community Hospital to give more information and support to unpaid carers in the town and encourage them to stay and support their loved ones whilst they are in hospital.

These new services are:

  • A Carer’s Passport scheme, which identifies someone as being a carer and encourages them to actively participate in the care of their loved one
  • A Carer’s Information Service which will raise awareness of carers, identify hidden carers and provide them with appropriate information, referral and signposting
  • Signing up to John’s Campaign which recognises the right of carers to stay with people with dementia, confusion or other complex needs who find it hard to cope in unfamiliar situations
  • A Carer’s Cafes at Chippenham Community Hospital where carers can meet regularly

Over 47,000 people care for loved ones in Wiltshire with thousands passing through the community hospitals each year. Many do not recognise themselves as carers and miss out on the support and information available that could help to ease their situation.

Judy Walker, CEO of Carer Support Wiltshire said: “Our Reaching Communities Team, Community Connectors and Support Workers work out in our communities with GPs, hospitals and other organisations identifying carers and helping them to access the support and information they need. Working in the community hospitals with Wiltshire Health and Care means we can help connect more carers with appropriate support services.”

Sarah-Jane Peffers, Director of Quality, Professions and Workforce at Wiltshire Health and Care said: “Wiltshire Health and Care is pleased to be working with Carer Support Wiltshire; we are committed to ensuring people admitted to hospital remain safe in our care and are actively supported to recover from their illness, rehabilitate and return home as soon as possible. To make this happen we must actively engage and support carers and implementing the Carer’s Passport and signing up to John’s Campaign shows our commitment. These services along with the Carer’s Cafes and Carer’s Information Service will hopefully ensure carers have all the available information and resources they need.”

The Carers Café at the Grapevine Restaurant at Chippenham Community Hospital will run on the last Tuesday of each month from 2pm to 3.30pm. It will be staffed by carer aware volunteers and staff from the Carer Centres. We hope to see you there!