Carers’ Support (Bexley)
Carers’ Breaks Project (incorporating Greenwich Volcare)
The Carers’ Support (Bexley) breaks project is available to carers where the person cared for lives in either the London Borough of Bexley or the London Borough of Greenwich. In Greenwich the project is called Greenwich Volcare. The project aims to provide flexible respite for carers by offering live-in support to people in their own homes. Support is given by full time volunteers who are trained by the carer and cared-for person to carry out whatever personal care, domestic tasks and social activities are required while the carer is away. In certain circumstances, volunteers can also accompany a family on holiday to assist with the caring and enable a carer to have a more relaxing holiday. Relationships are built up gradually and only when everyone is happy about it will the volunteer take over from the carer.
The Scheme has funding from Bexley Council Social Services (Tel: 020 8303 7777), Greenwich Social Services (Tel: 020 8854 8888), Bexley Care Trust (Tel: 020 8298 6000) and The Big Lottery Fund. There are several similar schemes now operating in other parts of the country.
As an organisation providing care in people’s own homes, we are registered with the Commission for Social Care Inspection. If you wish, you may see a copy of the Commission’s latest Inspection Report about our service.
Details of Service
- Carers and cared for people of any age can use the service.
- Support can be offered for one-off periods of care or for planned breaks of up to two weeks at a time. Depending on the availability of the Co-ordinator and volunteers, one-off emergency visits can also be offered. We can also provide regular, short breaks (5 hours minimum) on the understanding that priority has to be given to carers booking longer breaks.
- Services provided by other agencies eg Home Care, Meals-on-Wheels will continue to be provided while the carer is away.
- If the cared-for person is a child under 16 the volunteers will share the care with the parents and other agencies, but cannot take sole responsibility for the child other than for short periods (a few hours at the most), and only then if parents, the volunteer and the Co-ordinator agree that it is safe. A parent or other responsible adult must be contactable at all times in case of emergency.
- The service is free. Families will be expected to provide food and out of pocket expenses for the volunteer during their stay. Volunteers cannot accept any personal payment but donations to Carers’ Support are welcome.
- Each family may book up to 28 days per year (between 1 April and 31 March)
About Our Volunteers
Our volunteers are young people who commit themselves to working with Carers’ Support for between six months and a year. They are provided with accommodation and living expenses by the Scheme. They are able to work evenings, overnight and at weekends so that carers can have a break when they most need it. Volunteers are expected to undertake all the tasks usually done by the carer, whether these are domestic eg cooking, or to do with personal care eg assisting with washing, dressing, toiletting etc. They are not expected to do any heavy domestic tasks such as cleaning windows. With regard to cooking, we usually suggest that frozen, ready meals are provided for the cared for person, as few volunteers come to us with much cooking experience.
If necessary, volunteers may undertake certain financial transactions on your behalf. For example, if you are going away on holiday, you might want the volunteer to buy some shopping while you are away. Please discuss this fully with the Co-ordinator when s/he comes to see you initially as we have to follow strict procedures about handling money. The money always needs to be provided in advance as volunteers are not allowed to pay for things out of their own pocket and then claim it back afterwards.
The volunteer can accompany the cared-for person on local trips eg to the shops, library, cinema. He/she is also there to provide companionship and to ensure that the time spent with the cared-for person is a positive experience for them both. It is important to remember that the volunteer is there because they want to help and they need to know that they are valued. For their part, volunteers are aware that they are guests in your house and should respect your wishes about how things are done. All volunteers have an enhanced Criminal Records Bureau (CRB) disclosure and/or a clear Police check from their country of origin (if they do not normally live in the UK).
What Happens
Referrals to the Scheme can be made by families themselves or by someone on their behalf. Once a request for the service has been accepted the Co-ordinator will arrange to visit you at home. The purpose of this visit is to look at what needs you and the cared-for person have and if we can help. Consideration will be given as to whether a volunteer can carry out the tasks involved without problems, and without risk to their own safety or that of the person requiring assistance.
A volunteer may then be introduced to you. He/she will have a series of visits arranged to get to know the person they will be looking after. Volunteers receive basic training when they join the project including training in First Aid and Moving and Handling, but they also need to be trained by you so that things are done in the way you and the cared-for person want.
The planned break can take place when everyone is confident about the volunteer’s ability to support the person needing care and the volunteer and the cared-for person both feel that they can get on together while you are away. The Co-ordinator is available to support these arrangements and provide any additional training needed.
Health and Safety
We are obliged to protect the health and safety of our volunteers and the person they are caring for. We may therefore have to ask you to comply with certain requirements. For example when moving someone with mobility problems, the right equipment will need to be in place. Another example is that when travelling by car, the volunteer must have a seatbelt and would not be allowed to hold a child on his/her lap. Other factors we have to take into consideration include the environment the volunteer will be working in or any appliances they may be using.
We cannot allow our volunteers or staff to be subjected to passive smoking in the course of their work and we will therefore ask you to provide a smoke-free environment when they are in your home.
Emergencies
Please ensure that you give your volunteer the telephone numbers of people who can be contacted in an emergency. If there are any special situations that they may have to cope with, please let them or the Co-ordinator know. The volunteer will have access to a member of Volcare staff in cases of emergency as well.
Please be aware, that unfortunately, we may not be able to advise volunteers of cancellations at short notice, as we do not have the funding to enable us to have a member of staff in the office all the time. If you telephone the office to cancel a visit over the weekend, for example, your message will not be picked up until Monday. Our volunteers are aware that at times their booking may be cancelled by the client on arrival.
Insurance
Although every effort will be made to meet your needs and provide a volunteer for the times/dates you request, we cannot guarantee a service for specific periods. It is therefore very important that you take out the necessary insurance to cover for cancellation if you book and pay for a holiday. It is also in your interests to provide insurance cover for any damage which may accidentally be caused by a volunteer in your home. Volunteers are covered by public liability insurance through the Project.
Equal Opportunities
Carers’ Support aims to promote equality of opportunity. Families wishing to use the service should not be discriminated against on grounds of race, disability, age, religion, sex, marital status, suspected or actual HIV status, sexual preference or ethnic origin. This also applies to the acceptance of volunteers onto the Project. Any racial or sexual abuse or harassment of volunteers while they are with families may lead to the service being withdrawn.
English is the only language spoken by Carers’ Support staff. However, we do have access to interpreters and signers if needed. Please let us know if you require this service.
About the Future
If you decide to use our service on an on-going basis, it will be necessary to introduce other volunteers to you from time to time. Either the Co-ordinator or another volunteer you already know will usually bring the new volunteer to meet you and the person you care for. Even if there is no change of volunteer, the Co-ordinator will need to visit you from time to time (and at least once a year) to ensure that the details you gave us originally are still up to date and review your Care Plan. Please let us know as soon as possible if there are any changes to your circumstances or to the needs of the person you care for.
Donations
The funding we receive only covers the day-to-day running of the scheme. Carers’ Support relies on donations from the families who benefit from the service in order to provide any “extras” which are needed, for example, birthday and Christmas presents for the volunteers, items of furniture for their flat, office equipment and other unforseen expenses. If you are satisfied with the service you receive from Carers’ Support and would like to make a donation, cheques should be made payable to “Carers’ Support (Bexley)” and sent to the address on the front of this leaflet.
Comments and Complaints
Carers’ Support is keen to provide a service that meets the needs of individual carers and those they care for. We aim to respond to your needs within the limitations of our resources. We therefore welcome any comments or suggestions you wish to make. You will be asked to complete a questionnaire about what you think of the service offered. This will help us to make any changes that might improve the service and also help with the Project’s continued funding. You may request a copy of the results.
Of course, we hope that it never happens, but if you are unhappy with our service and wish to make a complaint, we have a complaints procedure which is attached to these guidelines. Please don’t think that you will lose the service or be a nuisance by complaining — we need to know.
How to Contact Us
If for any reason you need to contact your volunteer or the Co-ordinator, please telephone the office on 020 8302 6579 (for Bexley) or 020 8302 0198. You can leave a message on the answerphone if no-one is available. You can also contact us by email: hazel@carerssupport.org (for Bexley) or greenwichvolcare@carerssupport.org (for Greenwich). Website Address: www.carerssupport.org
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