www.crossroadscarecambridgeshire.org.uk Tel: 0845 241 0954 or 01480 499090
Crossroads Care Cambridgeshire are the leading Care Quality Commission Registered organisation in Cambridgeshire providing an extensive range of services for carers and the people they care for. We are a Not for Profit charity committed to working in partnership with Cambridgeshire County Council and other funders to improve outcomes for all carers of any age. Many of our services are free, funded from grants and contracts and we raise charitable income and use public donations to provide much needed additional support and services (see page 10). People often say No, I m a husband, wife, partner, son, daughter, mother, father, grandparent, grandchild, a friend or a neighbour. Many people do not see themselves as carers and don t recognise the effect caring has on their own lives. On average, this takes 2 years - time for finances or health and well being to suffer. Once you have made this recognition, you may want to think about the services available to you. Plan ahead and don t leave it too late! Please see the checklist on page 12. About Us 2 Are you a carer? 2 Care in your home 3 Adult Short Breaks 3 ICER 4 Carer Services Prescription 4 Home Share 5 Mental Health 5 Carers Groups 6 Health and Well Being Events 7 Advocacy 7 Short Breaks for Children 8 Young Carers 9 Day Care 10 Help us to help others 10 Information & Advice 11 Find out more 11 Are you a carer checklist 12 2
We are trusted to step into the carer s shoes to provide personal and social care to people of all ages in their homes. This service enables carers of adults and children to have a well deserved break from caring. You can leave your loved one to pursue a hobby, attend a therapy session or develop new skills, be helped to go on an outing together, remain in employment or simply have a rest elsewhere in your home. We try to match a care support worker to your needs and arrange times to suit you. For more information on Children's Services for parent carers, please see page 10. Care in your home is available in Cambridgeshire and Peterborough. Funding for care breaks can be from local authority Social Care, NHS Cambridgeshire, NHS Peterborough, Grants, Charitable Donations or you could purchase it privately, including using Direct Payments or Personal Budgets. Cambridgeshire County Council use some of the Carers Strategy Funding to provide short breaks for adult carers of adults. These are often flexible and may be one-off type breaks, rather than regular appointments. Adult short breaks may be your first experience of trusting someone to look after the person you care for. They are particularly intended to support new carers or hidden carers who may not have had a Carers Assessment and may not be receiving other services. 3
Crossroads Care Cambridgeshire are contracted by Cambridgeshire County Council to provide an Individual Carers Emergency Service (ICER) throughout the county. The Scheme has been set up to help carers plan for situations when a sudden unexpected emergency prevents them from carrying out their caring role. We will provide free support in your home for up to 48 hours. Carers of adults must have had a Cambridgeshire County Council Carers Assessment to be eligible. If you would like further information, a statutory Carers Assessment or would like to register with the ICER Scheme please call on. Are you caring for someone and feel emotionally or physically overwhelmed? Would a break make a difference to your well being? You can visit your GPs and explain your situation and be issued with a free Prescription, so a member of our staff can contact you with information. We will visit you to discuss the most appropriate form of support, which could include a free short break. We can point you in the right direction to where you can find out more about caring, your rights, free services or benefits you may be entitled to. You may choose to have a short break for some me time away from it all to support your own health or to keep an appointment. 4
We can offer a regular break free of charge, sponsored by the National Gardens Scheme through Crossroads Care. We have set up a Home Share Service for people living with dementia, where for one or two days a week from 10am to 3pm, in different houses, our health and social care trained staff open their homes and play host to 2-4 people with similar stages of dementia. We give people a friendly and safe domestic home from home, where everyone gets to know one another, with lunch and drinks too. People can take part and enjoy activities such as cards, dominoes, music, singing, cookery and exercise, or just sit and watch, if they prefer. Staff will provide transport if needed. For the main carer, this will give five hours to do whatever they wish, plus a chance to meet other carers. Carers of people with mental health conditions experience many of the same issues as carers of people with other conditions, but they often receive different support, related to the funding of those services provided to the person they care for. We support many people with dementia and other long term conditions-and their carers and link to other specialist voluntary organisations. Many carers themselves also have health issues, which may include mental health, sometimes as a consequence of their caring. So its not surprising that many of the young carers and adult carers that we support care for people with mental health conditions. 5
We provide social Carers Groups throughout Cambridgeshire for adult carers, young adult carers aged 18-25 years and also parent carers. Groups are run regularly at different venues with the purpose of socialising, information sharing, sign posting and activities or one-off events. To complement the Carers Groups we also offer Healthy Lifestyle Carers Clinics and Health and Well Being Events. Essential replacement care and transport may be possible for carers attending groups. Supported by Pinpoint, our Parent Carer groups give an opportunity to relax and socialise with other parents who care for a child or young adult. If you would like to attend a Carers Group or find out more, please call Jean at Crossroads Care Cambridgeshire on or check our Facebook page or website. If you run a group and would like to make it more accessible to carers or people with care needs, please contact us. We also link with Opportunities after Caring groups. All Services on pages 6 and 7 are funded by Cambridgeshire County Council 6
We hold Health and Well Being Events for carers every quarter in each of our localities: Cambridge City and South Cambridgeshire East Cambridgeshire Huntingdonshire and Fenland. Events are fun and a valuable time away from caring. Events include spa days, stress relief and day trips. One recent spa day attendee said It was a lovely time - just for me; it s not a thing I get much of so thank you to the excellent staff at Wood Fen Lodge and thank you for making the day s arrangements for me. I would not have a day like that on my own - it was very special. I will go home recharged and calm. We provide a free service to enable carers to access Advocacy support in Cambridgeshire. If you feel that you need support to speak up about what you need as a carer, or help in putting forward your views, please give us a call on and we can let you know what service may be available to you. 7
We offer a variety of Short Breaks for children and young people with disabilities aged 5-18 years. We also organise day outings for groups of children and young people and hope to do more of this now we have our own adapted minibus! Through these, we support children and their families towards independence and help achieve lasting outcomes for children (Every Child Matters) and their family carers. 1 to 1 support based in the family home may be during term time and / or school holidays (see page 3) and could include visits to the cinema to experience using money and working out costs; going swimming to help stay healthy; or pursuing a hobby, to help enjoy and achieve. We also provide regular weekend groups and some holiday playschemes, for children and young people with learning and physical disabilities who want to take advantage of specialist facilities including sensory rooms and sports equipment. One Saturday group specialises in providing breaks for children with autistic spectrum conditions. Other regular groups for children and young people meet in Cambridge and St Neots, with holiday playschemes in Fenland. 8 Cambridgeshire County Council fund some services for children on pages 8 & 9
Our Young Carers service supports hundreds of Young Carers living in Huntingdonshire and Fenland, mostly through charitable finding. If you are aged between 8 and 19 years and have a family member who has a disability, long-term illness, mental health problem or who misuses drugs or alcohol, and you live in Huntingdonshire or Fenland,* please get in touch. Our Projects enable young carers to meet other young people in similar caring roles and have fun away from their responsibilities. Activities and support includes: Regular groups (see our website or Facebook for dates) Day trips Focus days and activities such as healthy eating and drama or photography workshops Residential trips away from home A Youth Council to have a voice in what we do A 1:1 service and advocacy support School groups (currently only in Huntingdonshire) To find out more about our Young Carers Projects please call if you live in or if you live in. * We work closely with Centre 33, who support young carers in Cambridge and South and East Cambridgeshire. 9
Some carers appreciate longer breaks if they are happy that their cared for person is happy too. We provide small, activity based day care groups in March, Whittlesey and Wisbech. We also support Fulbourn Day Centre Charity in Fulbourn, South Cambridgeshire. Many of us will take on a caring role at some point in our lives, but until we do, we usually don t appreciate the impact - both financial and on our physical and mental health - or understand how worrying, lonely and frustrating it can be to do something so important and rewarding. We re here to help. Crossroads Care Cambridgeshire is a registered Charity which now provides much more than the traditional core Crossroads service of respite for carers in their own home. We rely on donations and the occasional legacy in a Will for many of our charitable activities. If you would like to make a one-off donation for something or a regular donation from your salary, please call us on. You can make a one-off donation of 5 by texting to, or if you want to make a donation of a different amount, simply alter the value in your text to 1, 2, 3, 4, 5 or 10. 10
Find us on A good starting place if you care is. Another is Cambridgeshire County Council s website. Alternatively you can call their on or. Young carers can find out lots of information and use the chat forum on. There are lots more links on our website. on on 4 The Meadow, Meadow Lane, St Ives, Cambridgeshire, PE27 4LG E: care@crossroadscarecambridgeshire.org.uk W: www.crossroadscarecambridgeshire.org.uk Charity Registration Number 1091522. West Anglia Crossroads Caring for Carers (known as Crossroads Care Cambridgeshire) is a company limited by guarantee. Registered in England and Wales Number 4379948. Registered office: 4 The Meadow, Meadow Lane, St Ives, Cambridgeshire, PE27 4LG. The Crossroads Care trade mark is a collective mark. Care Quality Commission registered 3 star Excellent 11
Do you help a family member, friend or neighbour that: is frail has a disability has a chronic illness and/or has a mental illness has a substance misuse problem with drugs or alcohol and this is not your paid job? Please tick as many of these statements that apply to you Is this help regular and ongoing? Does this help involve showering, toileting, dressing or other personal care? Does this help involve cleaning, cooking, shopping, transport and/or assistance with bills or other paperwork? Does this help involve medication or other health care? Would this person have difficulty managing on their own if you could not provide regular and ongoing support? Do you receive Carers Allowance or no payment at all? If you can tick any of these you are a carer. 12 Ver 2.0 January 2012 Review July 2012