The Princess Royal Trust Richmond Carers Centre

Key Strategic Organisation - Services for Carers

Richmond Carers Centre and Richmond Crossroads have joined forces to become the Key Strategic Organisation (KSO) for Services for Carers in the London Borough of Richmond upon Thames.

WHO is a carer?

A carer is someone of any age who, without payment, provides help and support to a partner, child, relative, friend or neighbour, who could not manage without this help. This could be due to age, physical or mental illness, a disability, a mental health problem, or a substance abuse problem.
Young Carers take on practical and/or emotional caring responsibilities that would normally be expected of an adult.
Anyone can become a carer. Carers come from all walks of life, all cultures and can be of any age. Many carers do not consider themselves to be a carer. They are just looking after someone they care for.

Facts about carers

There are approximately 7 million Carers in the UK.
One is 6 of all adults are carers.
There are approximately 58000 children and young people with caring responsibilities.
There are almost one million Carers who are looking after someone for more that 50 hours per week.
If every Carer stopped caring it would cost the state £57 Billion a year.
33% of Carers say they have not had a break in the last two years.
Three out of five will become a Carer at some time in their lives.
Half of all carers look after someone over the age of 75.

There are approximately 20800 Carers in the London Borough of Richmond upon Thames, of that there are 1050 Black and Minority Ethnic Carers, approximately 3000 Young Carers and 1950 Carers over the age of 70.

What we do

Richmond Carers Centre helps Carers by providing information, support and advice, opportunities to participate in leisure activities and to have a break, specialist services for Black and Minority Ethnic Carers and Young Carers, support to primary care professionals working with carers, and providing a platform for carers voices to be heard.

Richmond Crossroads service is about giving time – improving the lives of Carers by giving them time to be themselves and have a break from their caring responsibilities. We provide practical support where and when it is most needed, either in the home or through community based projects such as Children’s Saturday clubs and the Caring Café for people effected by dementia.

Our KSO Goals

In our development year (2005/06), we aim to:

• Negotiate partnership arrangements between Richmond Carers Centre and Richmond Crossroads

• Design and develop a local Carers website

• Work with 8 local voluntary sector organisations using the Kings Fund ‘How Good is your service to Carers’ quality assurance tool to review, reflect on and improve services

• Develop a three year improvement plan for KSO activities

We look forward to continuing to work in partnership with Carers and the voluntary and statutory sectors to enhance the lives of carers and their families/people they care for, and continuing to raise awareness and satisfaction of carer needs.

Richmond Crossroads 'Caring for Carers'

Richmond Crossroads Care is a local charity set up in 1987 and affiliated to the Crossroads Association. Its purpose is to provide practical and emotional support in the form of respite to Carers who are responsible for caring for adults including older people and children who have a physical/sensory disability or who are chronically ill.

Services include:

• home based respite breaks.

• Cafe for people affected by dementia.

• two Saturday Clubs for Children with Special Needs.

• Macmillan/Crossroads Palliative Care Service.

Crossroads is Carer led so that the needs of Carers are paramount in the provision of our services. We offer a flexible service to meet the needs of Carers and those they care for.

All Care Support Workers and fully trained and are CRB checked.

Our mission at Richmond Crossroads we are committed to high quality practical support providing home based respite where it is most needed.

Why do carers need support?

Taking on a caring role can mean facing a life of poverty, isolation, frustration, ill health and depression. Many carers give up an income, future employment prospects and pension rights to become a carer. Many carers also work outside the home and are trying to juggle jobs with their caring responsibilities. The majority of carers struggle on alone and do not know that there is help available to them. Carers say that access to information; financial support and breaks in caring are vital in helping them manage the impact of caring on their lives.
Facts about carers
• There are almost 6 million carers in the UK.
• One in ten adults in the UK is a carer.
• 13 million people can expect to become carers in the next decade
• Approximately 8.5% of the London Borough of Richmond upon Thames population have some caring responsibilities
• There is an estimated 17700 – 20800 carers living and caring in our borough.
• The peak age for caring is 45 – 64. One fifth of adults in this age group provide care.
• 18% of carers look after more than one person.
• More than 80% of carers say that caring has had an adverse impact on their health
• It is estimated that carers save the country/Government £57 billion each year, yet a decision to care can mean a commitment to future poverty
• 68% (3.56million) provide care for up to 19 hours per week
• 11% (0.57M) provide care for 20 – 49 hours per week
• 21% (1.09 M) provide care for 50 or more hours per week
• 2 to 3% of children under 18 years of age will be young carers
What we do
Richmond Carers Centre provides carers with the following services by telephone, drop-in and group activities:
• Information, advice and emotional support
• Welfare benefits information
• An access point to respite care or practical help in the home
• Access to training and education
• Social & recreational events to combat the sense of loneliness and isolation experienced by many carers
• Counselling support and complementary therapy services
• Resource library of books and other mediums
• A link to other local and national support services
• Giving carers a voice
• Links to grants for education, transport, holidays and other breaks
• A specialty support and breaks service for black and minority ethnic cares
• A special service for young carers to give them a chance to be children while carrying out carers’ roles; providing breaks, activities, one-to-one support and information; signposting young carers’ family members to find alternative sources of support; encouraging adult and children’s services to work together to support whole families

In addition, Richmond Carers Centre also acts independently in the interests of carers through the following activities:
• Participating in research and public consultation
• Representing other organisations providing services to carers at service planning, review and commissioning meetings
• Working in partnership with Richmond Crossroads as designate Key Strategic Organization for Services for Carers
• Promoting and raising awareness of issues relating to carers
• Taking a lead role in reviewing, monitoring and implementing the local Carers Strategy
• Chairing the local Action for Carers Network for service providers & professionals
• Supporting carers to develop their own forum, in partnership with Richmond upon Thames Council for Voluntary Service, Social Services and Primary Care Trust
Richmond Crossroads service is about giving time – improving the lives of Carers by giving them time to be themselves and have a break from their caring responsibilities. We provide practical support where and when it is most needed, either in the home or through community based projects such as Children’s Saturday clubs and the Caring Café for people affected by dementia.
Richmond Crossroads Care is a local charity set up in 1987 and affiliated to the Crossroads Association. Its purpose is to provide practical and emotional support in the form of respite to Carers who are responsible for caring for adults including older people and children who have a physical/sensory disability or who are chronically ill.
Crossroads is carer led so that the needs of Carers are paramount in the provision of our services. We offer a flexible service to meet the needs of Carers and those they care for.
All Care Support Workers are fully trained and are CRB checked.
Our mission at Richmond Crossroads; we are committed to high quality practical support providing home based respite where it is most needed.
Contact: e-mail: richmonduponthames@crossroads.org.uk website: www.crossroads.org.uk Tel: 020 8831 6088
Our KSO Goals
In 2008/09 we aim to:
• Plan and deliver annual carers conference
• Continue the development of local Forum for carers
• Actively participate in local consultation forums and other relevant meetings to represent the carers sector
• Continue to lead, in partnership with Richmond and Twickenham Primary Care Trust and the Local Authority, the review and development of local Carers Strategy 2007 – 2010
• Participate in decision making about commissioning strategy for carers
• Continue chairing the Action for Carers Network
• Continue to support local organisations supporting carers to use the Kings Fund ‘How Good is your service to Carers’ quality assurance tool to review, reflect on and improve services
• Disseminate information to members of the Action for Carers Network in relation to funding opportunities
• Work with local consortium to submit a bid for the delivery of work within the Self Directed Support framework
We look forward to continuing to work in partnership with Carers and the voluntary and statutory sectors to enhance the lives of carers and their families/people they care for, and continuing to raise awareness and satisfaction of carer needs.

Contact: e-mail: richmonduponthames@crossroads.org.uk
Tel: 020 8831 6088