Welcome to The Association of Carers website

We are happy that you have visited our website. Carers are too easily forgotten, they work so hard, hidden and often isolated in their homes, caring for someone that obviously means the world to them.

They are deeply appreciated by the one they care for – but does society recognise their value?

There are around 18,000 carers in Hastings, St Leonards on Sea, Bexhill and Rother
Have you ever considered the extra responsibilities a carer has?
How would you feel if someone you loved became ill and needed constant care?

About us

See our new video on

 

The Association of Carers offers a friendly and effective respite service to Carers and their loved ones they care for within Hastings and Rother. Established in 1987 the association is a recognised provider of services that supports Carers and their families within their homes, all our services are free to all Carers and are provided by volunteers.

We provide several services, our main and original service is a free home based respite service for Carers.   We match volunteers and the cared for person together and introduce them to one another the volunteer then visits and sits with the cared for person in their own  home, offering companionship and support to the person they care for for a few hours each week.   This allows the Carer of the card for person to have some time to themselves to either shop, take up an activity, meet friends or keep an appointment, knowing that the one they care for is safe and in friendly company.

We also provide four other great services (all for free!) .

For Carers between 7 and 18 we have an individually tailored service, please visit our Young Carers page to find out more!

For the adult family Carers we also have  Talk and Support Service which has been mainly funded by Comic Relief  and Peers Support Groups which is being supported by Lloyds TSB for England and Wales.  please click on the links to find out more but we feel these services are very important to help break isolation, especailly for Carers are living in rural areas. 

We also offer a Computer help at home service so that Carers can learn how to use their computers without needing to leave the person they care for alone.  This will also improve their Caring role as they can learn to do things such as emailing or using social networking sites to reduce isolation or online shopping with home delivery so that when they do recieve one of the few breaks they have in a week they can use this time to do other errands or fun things for themselves – they deserve it!

To receive any other these services please contact us to refer yourself or others or just to find out more information.

Our Aims

• To promote the welfare of Carers and their dependants within their community
• Encourage their independence and support them in their caring role
• To raise the community’s awareness of Carers’ issues

Our Vision

Our vision for 2016 is to have…..

Trained Volunteers providing free support to family Carers throughout East Sussex

 

Mission Statement

Services

We offer free respite breaks, Talk and Support, young Carers respite and computer help at home to family Carers within Hastings and Rother to support them within their caring roles.

Volunteers and employees

We encourage and develop volunteers and employees through ongoing training, support and supervision.

Promotion

We actively promote within the community the organisation and the needs and challenges of Carers.

Funding

We continuously seek funding from new stakeholders and aim to retain the support and integrity from our core funders and supporters.

Values

Engaging  

We are committed to being a user-led organisation.

Respecting

We recognise family Carers’ have a right to be independent and receive respect and high quality support

Commitment

We value the dedication of our volunteers and their individual needs

Equality

We recogise, welcome and encourage equality and diversity

Confidentiality

We value and uphold the dignity and confidentiality of our service users

Community

We value the role the local community plays in supporting us

At present the committee employ three part time people to administer the day to day running of the office and the provision of services.  A Services Manager (Sue Palmer) and a PR & Fundraising Manager (Jo Oliver) and an Outreach & Project Worker (Sarah Bleach).  Our Chair person is Alison Purves, who is a Carer herself and has her own business.  We are still looking for a new Treasurer and Secretary for the Management Committee – all enquires welcome.