11th – 17th June 2018 #CarersWeek
About
There are approximately 6.5 million people who are carers for friends or family in the UK today. That’s 1 in 8 people who are unpaid carers. According to Carers UK figures 6,000 people become carers every day, whether suddenly due to an accident or illness affecting a loved one, or gradually as friends and family age. For many this can be a frightening and lonely experience and they don’t know where to turn to get help and support. Carers UK provide this vital link to people who find themselves in this new role, and to help them deal with the responsibilities that they now face. They also campaign to bring greater awareness to the wider public, and to petition against cuts to services that affect not only the service user but the carers too, and to help carers ensure they have a voice to seek a fairer deal when it comes to balancing their caring role with their own lives.
Carers Week is the annual campaign that raises awareness of what carers do and highlights the challenges they face. The aim of the week is to help people recognise the contribution that carers make to families and communities throughout the UK.
Get involved
Fundraising is a big part of the awareness week, whether it’s a sponsored event, or cake sale and coffee morning, the Carers UK website has some great resources and fundraising ideas: http://www.carersweek.org/get-involved
Maybe you already offer a free carer ticket as part of your ticketing policy, but what about a one-off free ticket just to say thank you to all the carers who help your other customers and visitors get to you? You could offer a number of free tickets to say thank you to all your carers and enable them to come along to visit you during Carers Week, perhaps with their partner or friend instead.
Could you host a carers support group in your café or bar area, and offer people a chance to drop in in and meet other carers in their area. It would be a great way for them to find local support and they can see what you have to offer at the same time – it might become a regular thing!