A carer is a person - adult or child of any age, who provides unpaid support to a partner, child, relative or friend who couldn't manage to live independently or whose health or wellbeing would deteriorate without this help.

About one in every 10 of the adult population is an unpaid carer, a figure which is on the increase (census, 2011). According to the 2011 Census, there are 18,224 carers in York, but many people who provide care do not recognise themselves as a ‘carer’

NHS Vale of York CCG is committed to hearing the voice of the carer and their families and this is most notable through our engagement work.

Covid-19 information for carers

• York Hospital: Easy read - Going to the hospital because you are poorly with symptoms of Coronavirus (COVID-19) (15/04/20)
• York Hospital: Covid 19 – People with Learning Disabilities and their carers- FAQ (15/04/20)

Attendance at carers advisory groups and forums

We regularly attend carers advisory groups (CAG). These groups are run by carers and professionals to represent the needs of carers. Through our involvement in these groups we are able to hear the voice of the carer and help to influence changes in care.

• CAG – East Riding meets monthly and the CCG attends quarterly
• CAG York – Meets quarterly

In 2019-20 we have led on the following pieces of work with carers through these forums:

• Developing and launching the City of York Carers strategy 2019-24
• Hosting GP awareness training: Run by York Carers Centre we host four training year at the CCG’s headquarters. These have been running since 2017 and have had representation from many of the GP practices across York. The aim is to increase understanding of carers, their role and its effect on their lives. It is an opportunity to explore how we as professionals working in the health and social care field can help to: identify carers early; recognise them as ‘partners’ in care; help carers to maintain their own health and wellbeing.
• Working with GP practices such as MyHealth to improve identification of carers and signposting them to support.
• Supporting GP practices to become carer friendly employers
• Review of services to support parents of young people with Special educational needs and disability (SEND) on moving into adulthood: We had a series of five seminars with York parent carer forum and the local authority, to find out more about the needs of parents of young people with SEND on moving into adulthood.
• Training with carers to recognise pressure ulcers and deterioration of family members: React to Red is an education package using a simple yet effective framework to support carers in recognising when an individual may be at increased risk of pressure ulcer development and the simple steps that can be taken to avoid them.
• Autism pathway review with York Parent Carer Forum (Parents of children with autism)

How do we involve carers in improving services?

Karen, a visually impaired local carer talks about her role as a carer, the daily challenges and the positive experience she has had with her GP practice.

Improving GP practices awareness of carers

In this second video, we talk to Karen about her involvement in carers groups, how the CCG supports these groups and why it is important for carers to speak up