Carers First, together with the United Lincolnshire Hospital Trust (ULHT), are opening a new hub for carers on the sixth floor of the Pilgrim Hospital in Boston.
The flagship programme is planned to open this September and will be run by ULHT, with Carers First volunteers providing information and support in a secure environment for carers to support the person they care for.
Sam Marshall is the Community Inclusion Coordinator for the Carers First Lincolnshire services.
She said: “The hub will provide a reassuring and safe space for carers who are in the hospital to support the person they care for, providing information and support to those who need it.
“We also hope that this hub will become a model to be replicated in other hospitals across the county, providing carers with much needed support while they are at the hospital.
“It will also operate as a central location for any other hospitals in the network to phone in for advice on how best to support carers in a hospital setting.”
Carers First can support carers with information on the support available in their local community, advice on benefits or as a working carer, access to a statutory carers assessment or events and activities locally that can give them a short break from caring.
The plans will also improve the care partners badge scheme, which helps hospital staff recognise a care partner and ensure they have access to some of the carer elements that they provide, such as more flexibility on visiting and authority to help support at meal times.
At first the hub will be open on Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Thursdays from noon until 4pm, with an aim of increasing to five days a week from 10am to 4pm.
Currently the hub has three volunteers from the ULHT alongside those from Carers First, but they are actively recruiting more volunteers.
For more information on volunteering, visit www.carersfirst.org.uk/get-involved/volunteering or email volunteer@carersfirst.org.uk.
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