25 attendees including some cared-for attended the Slough Carers Support Forum in September, which took place at Slough Mencap’s community hall. Tom Conlin began proceedings by thanking everyone for attending and paid tribute to Her Majesty the Queen, with all carers taking part in a one minute silence.
The aim of our Carers’ Forum is to create an environment where all carers feel they can share the difficulties they are experiencing in a safe space. Some carers were not aware of what steps they need to take if their cared for is taken ill or no longer has the mental capacity to deal with their finances and health needs.
When carers asked what they worry about most, they often reply “What will happen in the future?” Despite this, not enough carers and those they care for take the relatively simple step of making a Lasting Power of Attorney (LPA). An LPA is vital, as it gives the carer the capacity to act in the best interests of the person they care for, if they lose capacity to make decisions for themselves.
Kinder Bassi, Slough Carers Support Manager, outlined the structure of future forums which were designed in line with carers’ feedback and in collaboration with carers’ groups. Kinder also gave a brief overview on the Wellbeing Service available for carers and their cared for to access.
Kinder said: “Unpaid carers need support and so we are planning for 2022/2023 where we will offer an unpaid carer’s forum. It will assist with addressing some of the challenges faced by unpaid carers and provide a space whereby they can come and enjoy a coffee, have a friendly chat, get guidance, and support and meet other people in a similar situation.
Attendance will be free of charge and there is no obligation to attend regularly. It is hoped that in the future the forum will become a vibrant community of unpaid carers who can benefit from all the resources that are offered by Slough Carers Support.”
One attendee said: “Slough Carers Support is a matter very close to my heart as I and three of my close family friends are family carers; one looks after a mentally ill mother full time whilst his dad works, the other cares for his brother with severe Autism, and my best friend cares for her sister who has DS. I care for my aunt who is single and lives on her own and is physically disabled. I know they’ve all had personal struggles and feel sometimes they must limit their activities, however attending these open forums have always been very helpful, useful, and beneficial to us as carers. We have missed these since Covid came along!”
Details of our Christmas themed forum in December coming soon, watch this space!