The draft Dumfries and Galloway Carers Strategy 2017 – 2021 is now out for consultation. This has been developed following engagement with Carers, Carers Organisations and Partners as the current strategy ends in 2017.
A Carer is defined by the Scottish Government as “a person of any age who provides unpaid help and support to a relative, friend or neighbour who cannot manage to live independently without the Carers help due to frailty, illness, disability or addiction”. In Dumfries and Galloway, Carers make up 10% of the population and of this group, 29% provide more than 50 hours of support a week.
Carers are a vital component of the health and social care system. Unpaid Carers are the largest group of care providers in Scotland, providing more care than the NHS and Councils combined, avoiding costs of over £10bn per annum (University of Sheffield 2015).
Linda Owen, Strategic Planning and Commissioning Manager said:
“We are keen to hear what local people think about the draft Carers Strategy for Dumfries and Galloway. The document has been informed by Carers telling us what matters to them. We would encourage as many people as possible to respond by the end of June 2017.”
A copy of the draft strategy can be found here: http://www.nhsdg.scot.nhs.uk/Resources/Communications/Documents/0586-16_Carers_Strategy.pdf
We would greatly appreciate if you can complete the survey, which can be found at this link https://www.surveymonkey.co.uk/r/dgcarers
This consultation is open from 3 April 2017 to 30 June 2017. Please feel free to share with other Carers, colleagues or organisations.
For more information or assistance to complete the consultation survey please email [email protected] or phone 01387 246 941.
Hard copies are available on request.
