Carers as Ambassadors – A New Project for Carers Living in Derby City

Derbyshire Carers Association are pleased to announce an exciting new project which benefits carers who access services, either for themselves or for the person they care for, within Derby city.

All Ambassadors are either carers themselves, or have cared for someone during the past two years. Some have been full-time, unpaid carers for many years and are aware that, through the care they provide, they save the country billions of pounds each year. With this in mind, Carers as Ambassadors are keen that services provided really do help to support carers in their role.

 Here is an outline of what Carer Ambassadors do:

  • Help Derby city make decisions which are supportive to carers

  • Talk to other carers and represent their collective needs at decision-making meetings in the city

  • Help shape new, and existing, Derby services which support carers and/or those they care for

  • Give talks and presentations on the role of informal carers, and the support needed, to teams and groups of people

  • Signpost individual carers who would like help and support to DCA for assessment.

The Ambassadors project is supported by, a city-wide ‘Carers Partnership Board’ involving Health, Social Services, voluntary and community groups and other agencies. Ambassador representation reflects the diverse community within the city area and is therefore accessible for all.

 To date:

  •  Ambassadors have attended in excess of 90 meetings to help make improvements for all Carers

  • Have networked with 37 Organisations/groups covering the city

  • Have been invited to contribute to various Derby City Council projects i.e. Holiday Information Guide, Carers Respite survey, Customer Focus Group, Carers Personalisation Conference & staff development

  •  Currently publishing leaflets in three different languages

The Outcome:

  • Carer Ambassadors are highly valued by local Carers – providing Carers with a voice to make meaningful contributions to service provision

  • Carer Ambassadors are highly valued by DCA – strengthening the existing support network available to Carers

  • Carer Ambassadors are highly valued by DCC – Providing a direct link to local Carers, giving real life stories /experiences to aid development of future services.

If you are a carer living in Derby city and would like to find out more about how you can make a difference or would just like to chat to one of our carer Ambassadors, please call: 01773 743355 or e-mail: ambassadors@derbyshirecarers.co.uk

The White House, The Willows, Slack Lane, Ripley, Derbyshire DE5 3HF  : 01773 743355  : derbyshirecarers@btconnect.com