Swindon residents who care for a family member or friend are being offered support to access the help available to them.

A free event, organised by Swindon Carers Centre, will be aimed at assisting those who take on unpaid caring roles.

The charity offers support, help, and information to people in Swindon who have caring responsibilities.

The Carers Rights Day drop-in session will take place on November 21 and will provide attendees with the chance to speak to representatives from a range of organisations and charities, working with and offering services for adult, parents, and young carers.

The event will revolve around the theme, ‘Who Cares for the Carer?’ and will provide information regarding health and wellbeing, financial issues, leisure opportunities, and education and training.

It will be held at the Punjabi Community Centre, Kembrey Street, Swindon, from 10.30am to 2pm. Free parking will be available for all attendees.

People can register for the event by visiting the Swindon Carers Centre’s Eventbrite page.

Carers Rights Day is a yearly national event dedicated to raising awareness about the rights and challenges of unpaid family carers.

Susanna Jones, chief executive officer at Swindon Carers Centre, said: "We hope unpaid carers will be able to come along to Carers Rights Day and find out the support available to help them in their caring role.

"We will have a marketplace of stallholders from a range of organisations providing information and advice.

"Often, carers don’t know about the range of support they are entitled to and by attending our event it’s a good opportunity to find out what may be beneficial, for example if you are worried about missing out on winter fuel payments or need help with your mental health."

A variety of stallholders will be present at the event, including representatives from Great Western Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust, Ipsum, a mental health and wellbeing charity, Swindon and Gloucestershire MIND, Alzheimer’s Society, Citizens Advice Swindon, Enham Trust, Swindon Food Collective, Live Well Swindon and more.

There will also be Swindon Borough Council commissioners in attendance to gather carer feedback to inform the new Carer Services Tender for Swindon, which is due for publication in January 2025.

Other organisations at the event will include Asset Guardian Company Limited, Wyvern Health Partnership, Swindon Borough Council's transition team, and Swindon SEND Families Voice.

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