Dear Islington Carer,

Sharing Islington Carers Hub's September newsletter!

Please find details of the latest Islington Carers Hub newsletter, with activities and resources for all carers aged 18 yrs+ living in Islington or caring for someone living in Islington.

NEWS

Getting Back Together Again!

We're delighted to announce that we will slowly be starting to add some face-to-face activities back into our Get Together programme. Our online activities will continue, but there will be some activities that are face-to-face.

To mark the opportunity to come back together again and meet each other in person, we are also looking forward to 4th October.  This is going to be the start of a celebratory week of mostly FREE face-to-face activities with partner organisations across Islington. You are invited to choose from a range of venues and all sorts of activities. A big focus of the events will be on food - we'll be coming together for a shared breakfast, lunch or afternoon tea!

In north Islington, Manor Gardens Welfare Trust will be hosting an event with Arsenal in the Community who will be sharing sporting memories and Cally Clock Tower Centre, an artist-led creative workshop.  Further south in the borough, there will be a dance workshop hosted by Sadlers Wells, a talk at the historic Charterhouse and a 3 course lunch for just £1 with jukebox requests at St Luke's.

To browse the activities and to book the one you'd like to attend, click below.

Finding the Power of Creativity

Images: Jeanne, Rita

Recently, we ran a Creative Writing workshop with the charity Create. The weekly Creative Writing’ sessions brought together a group of people to discover and develop their writing skills. This was followed up with a shorter Zine-Making course, bringing together a wonderful combination of images and text.

Taking part in a creative activity can work wonders in helping to improve how we feel, with the power to sharpen our skills and lift our mood! For an insight into how people found the workshops and further creative opportunities at Age UK Islington, read the article by clicking below.

OUR GET TOGETHERS & SUPPORT GROUPS

Carers Support Group: Wed 22 Sept 10.30am - 12

Join us for our monthly Carers Support group, to have a chat and share how you're getting on. The Islington Carers Hub team are looking forward to meeting you!

POhWER provides advocacy services to the residents of Islington in partnership with The Elfrida Society and where needed, can advocate on behalf of carers with issues with adult social care and communication with health care professionals.

They can also help carers in the event a carer cannot make decisions about their own care and they need help to understand or represent their situation e.g. to do a carer’s assessment or review a care and support plan.

To book your place at the support group, please email us by clicking below.

Book a place

Preparing for an Emergency Workshops, Sept & October

How well are you prepared for an emergency?  There's lots we can all do to prepare for an emergency - putting in place some basic plans and starting conversations with those that are close to us. From something as simple as letting people know where our spare keys are, to putting together an NHS Advance Care Plan or learning some basic first aid techniques. All of these things can save a lot of stress and heartache.

To help you to understand how you can best protect your health and financial wishes and those of the people who you are closest to, why not book onto a series of free online workshops coming up in September and October?  This includes a First Aid Course delivered by the Red Cross and simple, straightforward advice sessions from our Future Matters team (NHS funded), about things like putting in place a Lasting Powers of Attorney or an NHS Advance Care Plan.

Find out more & book

Relaunch of Mental Health Carers Support Group

The Mental Health Carers Support Group is especially for Islington carers who are supporting a family, partner or friend who has a mental health condition. You can share tips and how you’re feeling with other carers. It’s also a great place to get advice and to meet members of the Islington Carers Hub team. The group is led by Camden & Islington NHS Foundation Trust’s mental health support team.

Each session with start with an information giving session, but there will also be lots of time available for informal conversation and to share experiences, thoughts and perspectives. The topics that will be discussed in each session were highlighted by carers as points of interest.

Find out more & book

Dementia Course for Carers: starting Tues 5th October

A free five-week online course in October/November 2021 for those who care for someone with dementia, on Tuesdays 10.30 - 12.30pm. This will be hosted by C&I NHS Foundation Trust. For more information, see the Course Outline below. To receive a link to join, please email Islington Carers Hub: info@islingtoncarershub.org.

Find out more & book

NETWORK EVENTS & PROJECTS

World Alzheimer's Month Events in Islington

Do you care for someone living with dementia, are you living with dementia yourself or do you just want to know more about it? We have partnered with Dementia Friendly Islington to share details of a selection of events taking place across Islington, including dementia-friendly creative activities, singing, talks, dementia friends information sessions, nature walks and much more!  There are activities from Alzheimer's Society, Age UK Islington, Islington Council, Arts 4 Dementia and other Islington organisations.

There is also a Making Islington a Dementia Friendly Borough discussion (discussing housing, social care, community groups for people with dementia and other topics) on 1st October, 10.30am - 12. This is a joint project by the Alzheimer’s Society and Islington Council. They want to hear your experiences of living with Dementia or caring for someone with Dementia in Islington. This will be a facilitated group discussion over Zoom and they will send the discussion topics and questions ahead of the meeting.

Improved Support to Help People Get Active

Colleagues in the Camden & Islington Public Health Team would like to hear from adults who are currently physically active for an average of less than 30 minutes a week. They want to hear your views on what type of support would help you to be more physically active. If you can spare 15 mins to complete the questionnaire (before 17th September), your views will be used to improve what support is available in Camden and Islington, and to develop a new future service. You'll also be entered into a draw with a chance to win a £50 Love to Shop voucher.