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This newsletter contains the latest news and messages from Coventry City Council and information about local community groups and partners who are offering local support.
In this issue:
Hello. This month there is exciting news from Carers' Trust Heart of England. They are holding Carers' Awards in June and would like your nominations for the six awards they will be presenting. They also have two new groups for carers. Please see the information below.
Love4Life is coming to Coventry, which will support people with mild learning disability, autistic people and people with more complex learning disabilities to access and participate in a variety of social activities, make friends and maybe find love. As well as offering support around relationships and health and well-being.
You will also find included, information around COVID-19 boosters and who is eligible, details about voter ID and accessibility as well as news from Coventry libraries.
Future dates for your diary... Carers' Week 5 to 11 June. Carers' Trust Heart of England will be hosting a mixture of activities and sessions during this week, which they would love you to take part in. They will be providing face to face and virtual sessions. Please keep an eye out on their website and Facebook pages over the next few weeks for further information.
Take care and thank you for reading.
Carers Trust Heart of England are hosting a Carers' Awards on Thursday 8 June from 4pm until 7pm at St Mary’s Guildhall, Coventry.
You can submit your nominations for each of the six awards that recognise the fantastic work of businesses, general practitioners, school and carers. You can nominate up until Monday 22 May, 23:59pm. To find out more about each award and how to nominate please see the Carers Trust website.
Are you an unpaid carer?
You could be a carer and not know it!
A carer is anyone who cares, unpaid, for a friend or family member who due to illness, disability, a mental health problem or an addiction cannot cope without their support. Caring for someone can take up a few hours each week, or a carer may be caring for 24 hours a day, seven days a week.
We would like to understand how your caring responsibility impacts on your daily life, the challenges you face, which services, if any you have accessed, and anything else that you think we should know about, that affects your caring role.
With this in mind, Coventry City Council is undertaking a survey of people who have caring responsibilities for another adult and would very much like to hear your views. Please take a few minutes to complete our online survey which will be running until Friday 12 May 2023.
The information you provide will help us to have a better understanding of the wellbeing of carers and who is being cared for and may be used to improve services.
We will be out and about in the city to meet people and talk about the survey:
- Central Library (CV1 1FY) - 2 May from 10:30am - 12:30pm
- Stoke Library (CV2 4EA)- 2 May from 1:30pm - 3pm
We would love to meet you.
For any other inquiries related to carers, you can drop us an email.
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Home support is a key feature in the delivery of good Health and Social Care Services. These services support adults to remain living independently in their own homes, provide assistance to people and their family members / carers. When delivered effectively they allow for flexibility through a personalised approach to respond to changing care needs over time.
Well-designed home support is crucial to meeting the needs of an ageing population with growing care needs and for supporting working age adults with disabilities or mental ill health to live their lives.
Coventry City Council Adult Social Care would like your help in obtaining feedback on its Home Support Services.
The feedback will support our intention to recommission the services and it is important to us that the new services are informed with service user and carer feedback as much as possible. Your feedback will be part of the process to improve and redesign home support services so that they are up to date with people’s changing needs and any legislative changes since the current contracts were issued in 2016 and 2017.
To do so we are looking for volunteers to participate in two face to face sessions through May and June to understand further from individuals in receipt of home support services, and from their carers, their experience and any feedback to develop these services moving forward. To register your interest and for further information, please contact Mae Fletcher by 5 May 2023.
Information in respect of expenses related to attending the session will also be provided prior and refreshments will be available on the day.
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Love4Life is a friendship and dating network for people with learning disabilities and autism.
With more than 200 members, Love4Life is a great way to make new friends and find love. We are now offering Love4Life in Coventry.
Love4Life offers:
- health, wellbeing and safety workshops, including sex and relationships, money management and independent living skills.
- chaperoned dates.
- one-to-one support at drop-in sessions.
- leisure trips, performing arts activities and relaxed social sessions.
- regular social activities – from bowling or meals out to karaoke and discos.
Love4Life members include people with mild learning disabilities, autistic people and people with more complex learning disabilities who might need additional support. Many members also have a range of physical health conditions and disabilities that means all our events are fully inclusive and accessible.
There is more information on their website, you can drop them an email or call Hayley Ostler on 01329 826423 or her mobile 07766 133616.
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Group
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Time
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Where
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When
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Care and Share
(Mental Health Carers' Support)
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13:30pm – 15:00pm
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Zoom
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First Monday of each month
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Care and Share
(Mental Health Carers' Support)
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10:30am –12:30pm
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Bonds Lodge (Hill Street)
CV1 4AN
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First Tuesday of each month
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Herald Lodge – Carers' Social Group
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14:00pm – 16:00pm
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Herald Lodge
Canley Road Coventry CV5 6AR
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First Tuesday of Each month
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Yoga and Relaxation
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11:00am – 12:00pm
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Zoom
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Every
Wednesday
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Carers' Tea @ 3
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15:00pm – 16:00pm
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Zoom
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Every
Wednesday
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African & Caribbean Carers' Support Group
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13:00pm – 14:30pm
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Zoom
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Second Thursday of each month
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LGBTQ + carers
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13:00pm—15:00pm
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Zoom
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Third Thursday of each month
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Milan Social Group
(Drop-in session for ethnic carers)
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11:00am – 13:00pm
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Penny Collard Centre
CV1 3AY
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Every four weeks on a Friday
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General Carers' Social Group
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10:30am – 12:00pm
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Penny Collard Centre
CV1 3AY
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Third Tuesday of each month
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Male Carer group
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13:00am – 14:30pm
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Zoom
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Second Monday of each month
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Drop-in clinic for carers from ethnic communities
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09:30am – 13:30pm
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Broad Street Hall (Broad Street) CV6 5BG
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Next Session
22 May
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Ben Centre drop-in session
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10:00am-12:00pm
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Arthur Wilson House, Humber Road, Coventry CV3 1LL ·
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Last Friday of each month
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Carers' drop-in session
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1:00pm – 3:00pm
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Penny Collard Centre, CV1 3AY
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Every Tuesday
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Carers' drop-in session
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10:00am – 12:00pm
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Penny Collard Centre, CV1 3AY
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Every Thursday
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All the groups that we run are now on Eventbrite and can be accessed by anyone who is registered with us. Please do take a look as we are running different sessions ranging from yoga and relaxation, a carers' social group and carers tea@3, to name a few.
For information about any of the groups above you can also contact Carers Trust Heart of England on 024 7663 2972 option 1 to discuss.
We would love to see you.
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Join Claire Graham for an afternoon of Mindfulness and Breathing Session to tackle stress and help build resilience. The session will be held on Friday 4 May from 2pm till 4pm at the Penny Collard Centre, Coventry CV1 3AY
For more information please email or call 024 7663 2972 option 1.
Carers' Trust Heart of England is offering drop-in sessions for those carers whose loved one is an inpatient at the Caludon Centre.
Join us at one of our drop-in sessions where you can meet the team, have a carer's assessment, and find out how we can help support you in your role as a carer. The sessions will take place in room 11, Caludon Centre, Clifford Bridge Road, Coventry CV2 2TE
Pop in between 8:30am and 4:30pm on any of the following days:
- Friday 19 May 2023
- Wednesday 21 June 2023
- Thursday 13 July 2023
- Monday 7 August 2023
For more information please email or call 024 7663 2972 option 1.
Young Carers have had so much fun this April. We celebrated Easter with an art and craft session making sock bunnies, followed by an egg-stremely fun egg hunt!
On 12 April we opened our doors and welcomed all Young Carers to come along and spend some time with their families at The Penny Collard Centre. It was a great opportunity for families to meet our staff and talk about how young carers support them.
If you are a registered Young Carer and would like to give feedback to us, please complete our survey.
Our Young Carers also experienced an afternoon meeting some exotic creatures. We were lucky enough to meet a tarantula called Charlotte and some were brave enough to hold her!
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Our 16–25-year-old Young Carers came along to our Social Quiz night and proved just how talented AND competitive they are! We are planning to meet up every month for the opportunity to socialise and support each other.
This month has also seen Young Carers get together, make a meal, and have a chat. Cooking is a life skill our Young Carers love to do at our sessions and pasta bake was on the menu this month. Everyone got involved, either chopping vegetables, sauce making or setting the table.
On Monday 24 April we visited the Ballroom Climbing Wall in Coventry city centre, where the Young Carers took part in an instructed climbing activity. They showed so much resilience and courage and supported each other to overcome their fears. Well done to all who took part!
Please take a look at what we have coming up in May.
Welcome to our May activity calendar. Please discuss with your child/children which activities they would like to attend and send over your interest to Kelly on 07428 670040, who will confirm a place has been allocated.
Activities for 5 – 10-year-olds:
- 4 May – Coronation crafts
- 11 May – Fairtrade biscuit decorating
- 18 May – Youth club and book swap
- 25 May – Movie night with munchies
Activities for 11 – 17-year-olds:
- 2 May – Build a board game
- 9 May – Fairtrade brownie cooking session
- 15 May – Movie night with pizza
- 22 May – Youth club
Carer Information sessions 2023
Are you supporting someone with a diagnosis of dementia or concerned about someone’s memory?
The key benefits of the information sessions:
- Enabling carers to have increased knowledge of dementia
- Providing carers with practical information that they can use in coping with living with dementia day-to-day.
- Help carers to feel better informed and less isolated
- Empowering carers to access support services and financial benefits and entitlements.
- Enabling carers to plan with and for the person they care for, now and in the future.
The information sessions will run on the first Wednesday of every month at:
St Barbara’s Church, 22 Rochester Road, Coventry CV5 6AG
From 10.30am to 11.45am
Next month’s topic on Wednesday 3 May is: `Understanding Dementia`
For further information or to book a place you can call them on 024 7665 2602 or send them an email. Please contact your local office before attending.
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This year anybody voting in a polling station at the local elections will have to take a form of photo ID with them.
Accepted forms of ID include a passport, driving licence, an ID card with a PASS logo, an Older Person's bus pass or a blue badge. You can still use your photo ID if it is out of date, as long as it still looks like you.
The full list of accepted forms of ID can be found on the Electoral Commission website.
This year, the Council has made some changes to our polling station locations to ensure everyone with a disability can vote with ease and in comfort. Please visit our website to find out more.
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COVID-19 is more serious in older people and in people with certain underlying health conditions. For these reasons, people aged 75 years and over, those in care homes, and those aged 5 years and over with a weakened immune system are being offered a spring booster of COVID-19 vaccine.
You should be offered an appointment between April and June, with those at highest risk being called in first. You will be invited to have your booster around 6 months from your last dose but you can have it from 3 months.
If you are turning 75 years of age between April and June, you will be called for vaccination during the campaign; you do not have to wait for your birthday. There is further information on the Government's website.
We encourage all of you who are entitled to have the booster, to take up this opportunity. Please take care of you and your loved ones.
This is a face to face session for Parents/Carers of Children or Young People with Special Educational Needs or Disabilities (SEND). The session offers a great way to meet other parents/carers who may be in a similar situation, and an opportunity to share with others in a friendly, non-judgemental environment, together with a member of staff from SENDIASS.
When: Friday 5 May 2023, 10am – 12pm
Venue: Metropolis Restaurant, Upstairs Community Room, Earl Street, Coventry, CV1 5RU
Free tea and coffee will be provided 😊
If you would like to come along, just let us know so we have an idea of numbers. Contact us via email or call 024 7669 4307.
Do you have a query about Special Educational Needs?
Pop along and see us at our next SENDIASS drop-in session taking place at Families For All Hub on 17/05/23 between 1pm-3pm. No appointment needed.
When: Wednesday 17 May 2023, 1pm – 3pm
Venue: 454 Foleshill Road, Coventry, CV6 5LB
If you would like to further information please contact us via email or call 024 7669 4307.
Every year Coventry City Council produces a report which describes what the Adult Social Care service is doing to help improve the lives of vulnerable people and how well as a service it is performing along with areas where we are seeking to improve further. This report is usually referred to as the ‘Local Account’ but is also referred to as the ‘Annual Report’ for Adult Social Care.
We are currently looking for examples of anyone who has received support from an organisation where this has made a real difference to their life, or their loved ones life, to feature in this year's account.
If you have a story you wish to share and are happy to be featured, please email the team by 31 May 2023. We would be really grateful to hear from you.
Take a look at our 2021/22 Local Account.
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If you need advice or support go to Safe to Talk, Coventry City Council’s Domestic Abuse website. Here you will find information on services for survivors, children/young people and perpetrators. There is support around honour-based abuse, forced marriage and FGM. There is also an online chat function for anyone including professionals. Call 0800 111 4998, Monday to Friday 8.30am - 5pm or Saturday and Sunday 10am - 1pm.
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Coventry City Council’s energy advice partners, Act on Energy, have secured additional funding for the Keeping Coventry Warm programme.
The funding means that many more people will be able to benefit from a warmer home this year.
The scheme is designed to help Coventry residents (both owner occupiers and those privately renting) who have a long-term health condition or disability which is affected by living in a cold or damp home.
The help can include external wall insulation and first time installation of gas central heating – as well as cavity wall insulation, broken or inefficient boiler replacements, loft insulation and upgrades to electric storage heaters.
The income threshold is dependent on the number of people who live in the property so it’s well worth getting in touch to see if you qualify for help.
And even if you’re not eligible under this scheme, Act on Energy can access other schemes which may be able to help.
So if you’re worried about heating bills and how to heat your home properly, call Act on Energy’s free helpline 0800 988 2881 or visit their website.
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New Coventry Libraries App
Coventry Libraries are promoting their new app which replaces Iguana.
Once downloaded you can access the Coventry Library Service from your mobile device which will allow you to manage your account, search the catalogue, renew and reserve books.
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Free to access Digital Archive
Feed your nostalgia with BFIReplay, a free new service that gives you access to thousands of digitised video and TV programmes from the BFI National Archive and partner UK regions and Nations Film Archives.
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Home Library Service
The home library service is free and available to any person who has a disability which makes them housebound, so they are unable to get to a library, and live within the boundary of Coventry. If this is you, or someone you know, they could benefit from receiving a monthly collection of items from the library service.
Express an interest in the home library service
Still time to enter Photography Competition
You have until 1 June to enter Healthwatch Coventry’s 10th Anniversary Photography Competition. They are asking people to take photos in two categories, images of a number 10 or views of Coventry. It can be anywhere in Coventry, but we are particularly looking for community-based, more unusual scenes of Coventry, not just the tourist attractions. Find out more and how to enter by visiting their website.
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Healthwatch celebrates its 10th anniversary
It is 10 years ago this year that Healthwatch was started. Over the last decade, over 17,000 people have shared their stories, good and bad, with Healthwatch Coventry, sharing what's working and what isn't regarding health and social care. With the help of local people, Healthwatch Coventry has been able to help improve health and social care services in Coventry. You can find out more about what Healthwatch has achieved by reading their news page.
The importance of patient feedback
Research shows that we are four times more likely to share our thoughts on a meal at a restaurant or a takeaway at home than to comment on NHS services. Healthwatch Coventry is calling on more people to tell them when the NHS are doing a good job and when services can be improved. Chair of Healthwatch Coventry, Stuart Linnell, reflects on the importance of patient feedback in his latest blog.
GP referrals: ‘hidden’ waiting times
Latest Healthwatch research looked into people's experiences of getting a GP referral. It found the process is long and often confusing for many. Read more about it on Healthwatch’s website.
Would you like to know more about adult carers and young carers?
If so we have two courses that are available to help increase your knowledge. Both courses are free and you can access them in your own time. Please take a look and we hope you find them helpful:
It’s simple! Just add your email address in the top right hand corner and click GO!
You can also sign up or view previous bulletins from our Carers' website.
If you have any comments or wish to contribute something to the next bulletin, please let us know by contacting us at carers@coventry.gov.uk.
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