A relaxing social outing for carers as part of Carers Week!
Come along and enjoy a pot of cream tea or coffee, sandwiches, cakes and scones!!
Cost: £3 per person
Book: There is limited space for this event and so it is first come first serve to purchase tickets. Please contact the Carers Centre for more information on 0191 260 3030.
When: Thursday 13th June, 2.00pm
Where: Whistler Tea Rooms, across from Haymarket Metro Station
(142 Northumberland Street, NE1 7DQ Newcastle upon Tyne)
From 10am-4pm we will be in Grainger Market in the city centre talking to talk people about the Centre, what it means to be a carer and letting people know what support services are available for carers.
Free event – drop in and say hello!
When: Friday 14th June, 10:00 – 4:00 pm
Where: The Grainger Market. Grainger Street
This is a social and peer support event for carers.
We also have a guest speaker from Housing Planning and Transport who will be talking about financial assistance for work to roofs/heating/electrics/insulation.
No need to book, just turn up on the day.
Cost: free, donations accepted
When: Monday 10th June, 10:30am
Where: St James United Reform Church, Northumberland Road
As one of the partners of Carers Week 2013, Carers Trust are inviting carers to complete a new survey to explore how emotionally and practically prepared they were for their caring role.
Findings from the “Prepared to Care?” survey will be incorporated into a report to be published at the start of Carers Week 2013— taking place this year from Monday 10th to Sunday 16th June.
Click this link to complete the urvey: https://www.surveymonkey.com/s/CarersWeek2013
Highlighting the impact of caring
The “Prepared to Care?” survey aims to not only reveal the impact that caring has on the daily lives of the existing carer population, but also whether the wider population is prepared for future caring responsibilities.
Every day at least 6,000 people start caring. That’s 6,000 people whose lives are suddenly and significantly changed through the practical, emotional and financial requirements of caring for a loved one.
The survey should take less than 30 minutes to complete—but could make a big future difference to carers across the UK.
About Carers Week
Carers Week is a UK-wide annual awareness campaign. Its aim is to improve the lives of carers and the people they care for. It does this by:
Celebrating and recognising the contribution the UK’s 6.4 million carers make to the people they care for and their communities.
Helping the public identify themselves as carers and access the support, advice and information they need.
Highlighting the challenges of caring and campaigning for sustainable funding for services and support for carers and the people they care for.
Carers Week is delivered by a partnership of charities: Age UK, Carers Trust, Carers UK, Macmillan Cancer Support, Marie Curie Cancer Care, MS Society and Parkinson’s UK. It is supported by Independent Age, the Stroke Association and Carewell.
[Source: Carers Trust]
In March the Centre held a two day session on planning ahead for older carers who are worried about the future.
It’s very important for carers to think ahead about things like housing, money and support for the person they care for. We invited carers to come along to these two sessions to help inform them about planning they need to consider – what they might need to put in place now, as well as what support is available from other agencies and organisations.
A total of 12 carers attended and felt that it was an extremely helpful information session.
We are looking to organise another session to be held in Carers Week 10-16 June.
Carers Centre Newcastle has a new initiative to improve support for carers of people with dementia. Working with partners in health and social care, with the Alzheimers Society and with carers themselves, the initiative aims to:
• Provide person-centred assessments, support planning, planning for the future, information, advice and advocacy to individual carers
• Develop community based support groups for carers of people with dementia
• Provide complementary therapy sessions to give carers a break
• Deliver community based information/awareness raising sessions for carers of people with dementia through outreach work
• Develop locally relevant information for carers to complement the national information resources available
• Deliver dementia carer awareness/awareness of carer support sessions to a range of professionals
• Develop early and appropriate referral mechanisms for carers to gain information, advice and support
• Work closely with key health services to co-ordinate support for carers
On 31st January 2013 the Carers Centre held a consultation event for carers to feedback on the draft budget for 2013-2016. A total of 22 carers attended the event and heard presentations on the proposals from City Council Officers Mick McCracken (Childrens Services), Alison McDowell (Adult Services), and Jonathan Jamieson (Adult Services).
The event was well received by everyone and some very interesting discussions were had. Here is just some of the feedback that came out of the event:
The Carers Centre then held a follow-up budget consultation event and invited the carers who attended the first meeting to come back – if they were unable to attend they were sent a summary from the event. Alison McDowell and Jonathan Jamieson returned to update the carers on the final budget decisions and provided explanations on the final budget agreement.
Although it is five years since the Mental Capacity Act was passed, it is not yet working to empower vulnerable adults to take decisions for themselves and protect the interests of those who cannot do so. Read about why practitioners are failing to carry out capacity assessments correctly and test your knowledge by having a go at Community Care’s interactive guide to conducting an assessment, based on the Mental Health Foundation’s Assessment of Mental Capacity Audit Tool.
To find out more about the interactive guide visit www.communitycare.co.uk/static-pages/articles/guide-to-mental-capacity-assessments/
To find out more about the Mental Capacity Audit Tool visit www.amcat.org.uk
The Department of Health has published a new policy in support of carers.
Please follow this link to the Department of Health’s website to see what initiatives the government is making to support carers health:
https://www.gov.uk/government/policies/helping-carers-to-stay-healthy
One of the things we know about carers is that many often don’t recognise themselves as being one — in other words, they don’t realise that they are a carer. They don’t know about available help until quite late on, often after their own health and wellbeing has become badly affected.
Especially for adult carers, we know that the one service they are almost bound to come into contact with is GPs, if not for their own health then for the health of the people they are caring for. So it makes sense that GPS should identify carers and refer them to their local carers organisation for support.
That’s all they really have to do. It’s as straightforward as saying: “Well Mrs McGonigle, you’re doing a brilliant job of looking after your husband but I’m wondering whether there are things we could do to help you too. Did you know there’s a Carers’ Centre that can give you some help? Here’s the number. Why don’t you call them? And I can add you to my list so we can make sure we support you as a carer.” Sounds simple, huh?
Simple as it is, it often just doesn’t happen. GP surgeries get a payment for having a carers’ register. 10% of the population are carers — however, even when GPs are being proactive, it’s rare for a practice to have more than 3% of their list registered as carers.
Signs of progress
Across the country, Carers’ Centres and Crossroads schemes work with GPs surgeries to provide them with what they need to support carers better, and real progress has been made. The Government put some cash into this, and Carers Trust has been working with The Royal College of GPs and Carers UK to build better awareness.
For those of you who work for a Carers Trust network partner liaising with GPs surgeries, you can join our Facebook group where staff in similar roles share good ideas and support each other.
But things are changing. The indicator which means GPs get rewarded financially for having a carers register (QOF Management Standard 9 I believe) is being removed. Something similar will stay for carers of people with dementia, and it is suggested that they will also get a health check.
Getting GP practices engaged with carers
This is great, but what about everyone else? There are plans to put the requirement to identify carers in the outcomes indicators for Clinical Commissioning Groups but it’s not clear to me what teeth this will have, or whether practices will just be able to ignore it with impunity.
The current system isn’t great. It’s not well used, and it means GPs can identify a few carers, put them on a list and then do nothing to support them. But at least they do have to come up with some evidence at some point that they have met the outcome and they do it because there’s money attached.
It gives local carers’ organisations the hook they need to get GP practices talking to them. If the CCG outcome indicators have no teeth, that will be a step backwards. We need to know more.
[Source: Carers Blog, Carers Trust]
Thousands of carers in England, Wales and Scotland are set to lose benefits when new disability-claim rules start.
The Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) says 5,000 carers currently eligible for a £58.45 a week allowance will no longer be when personal independence payments replace the disability living allowance this April.
It says the changes are necessary and 20,000 additional carers should gain.
Charity Carers UK says this is “cold comfort” to those who will miss out.
Carer’s Allowance
New system
More than a million people receive carer’s allowance. And for about 270,000 of them, this entitlement is dependent on the eligibility for the disability living allowance (DLA) of someone of working age for whom they care.
When DLA is replaced by the personal independence payment (PIP), there will be new rules and assessments to judge who can claim assistance to help them lead an independent life.
If fewer disabled people can claim PIP than are currently receiving DLA, this would have a knock-on effect for their carers.
The DWP says about 76,000 disabled people with carers will be reassessed for PIP.
It believes 25,000 of these people will no longer be entitled to DLA as a result, and their carer will also lose their allowance.
At the same time, another 20,000 carers will be newly awarded an allowance as a result of the PIP reassessment – meaning a net total of 5,000 carers who will miss out.
But Carers UK says this estimate is too low. It says about 10,000 carers – 5,000 carers currently eligible under DLA and 5,000 “future” carers who would also have qualified under the DLA system – stand to lose.
Chief executive Helena Herklots said those families affected by these changes faced a double loss.
“The government is now cutting financial support for carers by £31m – meaning that thousands of families now face the devastating double blow of disability and carers’ benefits.
“This comes on top of cuts to social care services, cuts to housing benefit support for carers who need a separate room to sleep in, forthcoming reductions in support with council tax and thousands of carers who will have their benefits capped – a perfect storm of cuts to families already struggling to care for loved ones
The DWP said that it was investing more than before in carer’s allowance – about £2bn.
A spokesman said: “We’ve also protected the link between carer’s allowance and PIP entitlements, which has been welcomed by charities.
“Furthermore, the universal credit will ensure that those carers on low incomes receive the support they need by allowing them to keep more of their own money as they move into work.
“It will also give carers more flexibility if they need carers breaks.”
[Source: BBC News]
Two social care experts have two very different opinions on personal budgets, which allow individuals to decide how to spend their social care money.
NO
Peter Beresford: There is no dispute that personalisation of social careis an important objective. However, two pieces of published research I have written with Colin Slasberg and Peter Schofield show that the government’s strategy for delivering it, by giving people a “personal budget” to “self-direct” their support through a resource allocation system (RAS), has created a distraction from this challenge – and at great cost.
Simon Duffy, former chief executive of In Control, the organisation that pioneered the concept of self-directed support and developed individual budgets (now called personal budgets) and encouraged the government to adopt this system, recently issued a public apology for it.
Our first study, Can personal budgets really deliver better outcomes for all at no costs?, shows how claims that personal budgets are achieving better outcomes are simply untrue. They are based on the success of the small minority of service users whose personal budget takes the form of a “direct payment”. Direct payments have been around since the 1990s. People who have the necessary time, energy, skills and, crucially, support, have enjoyed great success. Critically, they are also far more likely to have the level of cash required to meet all their needs. In 2010, this group comprised just 7.7% of all service users, but commanded 13.7% of the spending.
An illusion that personal budgets work has been created by unrepresentatively packing survey samples with this small group of people. In a high-profile survey of 2,000 “personal budget” holders in 2010, about 90% were from this group. Crucially, the 10% who did not have a direct payment did not experience any better outcomes. Yet it is this 10% who truly represent most service users.
Our second study, How self-directed support is failing to deliver personal budgets and personalisation, reveals a major fault with the strategy. Its fundamental building block is the RAS – which Duffy calls a “disaster area” – that tells the person “upfront” how much money they will have to plan their support. However, councils have legal obligations in relation to meeting certain levels of need, and to manage their budgets within a cash limit. These decisions can only be made once the actual costs of meeting needs is known. This in itself makes a mockery of “upfront allocation”. A freedom of information request to a number of councilssuggests that the upfront allocations are wildly different from what people actually get. This makes them meaningless. It has taken a huge investment in bureaucracy to create these allocations.
Since 2007, the study found councils have significantly increased staffing levels to administer this, while the volume of support delivered has reduced. The loss of productivity is as much as 20%, costing in the region of £400m a year, which can be added to the £500m spent on introducing this system.
But all need not be lost. If the government faces up to the failure of this strategy, it can set a new direction that will work. The RAS, in all its forms, should be dropped, along with the consumerist philosophy that underpins the strategy. Most older and disabled people need to work with an infrastructure of advice, advocacy and administrative back-up to achieve the best approach to their support. The government must create the environment within which this can happen. While it is possible to pursue personalisation within existing resources, the government must accept that achieving the best outcomes requires people to have the level of resource that is right for them.
YES
Julie Stansfield: For decades, people in public services talked of shifting control and sharing power. Disabled people and their allies invented ways of making this happen – the social model, independent living, inclusion movement, direct payments – but the pace of actual change remained painfully slow. Service systems and cultures restricted progressive change.
Since 2007, personal budgets have given the system a shake. Thousands more people now receive direct payments (the way of using a personal budget that improves outcomes most). Many provider organisations are working hard to personalise their care offer to people – partly because this is the right thing to do but also knowing that people will have the ability to choose to go elsewhere. New innovations are starting to appear such as individual service funds, which offer a way for people who do not want to, or can’t, control the money for their care, to still get increased choice and control via a chosen provider.
Sally explains how a personal budget allowed her mother with dementia to live at home rather than in a care home where she had been put to bed every day at 3.30pm. “We used this budget to bring Mum back to her own home. She now, has her independence back and has her own staff so can choose what time she wants to go to bed. Mum feels safe in her home and is in control of her finances. She just needs a little help to make sure things run smoothly. I am convinced that Mum would not be here today if it were not for her personal budget,” says Sally.
The problem is not personal budgets but rather their poor delivery in too many places. Findings from the National Personal Budgets Survey clearly show that even those people receiving managed personal budgets achieved positive outcomes overall (although not as good as direct payment or individual service fund users). The analysis also clearly shows that improved outcomes are not simply the result of higher spend.
More important is the growing weight of wider research and evidenceshowing the potential of personal budgets and good and bad outcomes. Most recently, the independent evaluation of a three-year pilot of personal budgets in health showed significant improvements in wellbeing. Crucially, the findings about what works replicated those in social care. To achieve the best results, personal budgets must be delivered according to the principles of self-directed support – that is, people need to know the budget they have to plan their care with, be able to choose the mechanism for managing the budget and have maximum flexibility in use of budgets.
This is really important. Personal budgets are just a mechanism; the principles of self-directed support are the critical thing. But this is also where the real problem lies. Our advice line is inundated with people telling us these principles don’t apply where they live. It is in these places we find the over-complex resource allocation systems; burdensome support planning approaches; rigid rules on spend; social workers not trusted to make judgments; people left without information, advice and advocacy. We share the concerns about too much process and bureaucracy, and we are afraid that the situation is getting worse. But these problems don’t result from the model of self-directed support itself, but from difficulties public services have in transferring power to their users. We need to make common cause and fight together for personal budgets that truly shift power to people.
• Julie Stansfield is chief executive of In Control, pioneers of self-directed support
[Source: The Guardian]
The number of unpaid carers in England and Wales has reached 5.8 million – a rise of 600,000 since 2001, the Office for National Statistics (ONS) has said.
Figures from 2011 show that the largest increase was in unpaid carers working for 50 or more hours a week.
Wales had a higher percentage of people providing unpaid care compared with any English region.
In England, the highest percentages of unpaid carers were in the North West, North East and West Midlands.
The ONS study into unpaid care in England and Wales, 2011 found that more than 12% of the population in Wales provided some level of care in 2011.
The rise in those providing over 50 hours a week of unpaid care means that across England and Wales there are now 1.4 million people providing round-the-clock care – an increase of 270,000 people since 2001 (25%).
“Too often the costs and pressures of caring for older or disabled loved ones can force families to give up work.” - Helena Herklots, Carers UK
Across local authorities in England and Wales, the number of carers increased in 320 authorities and fell in just six.
In Birmingham, the number of unpaid carers increased by more than 9,000 between 2001 and 2011.
Across English regions and Wales, the provision of between one and 19 hours was the most common level of care provided.
London was the area with the lowest percentage of unpaid carers at 8.4%.
The study said London’s lower level of care provision was likely to be influenced by its younger age structure, the transient nature of its population and differences in household composition.
Family pressure
The provision of unpaid care is an important statistic, the ONS says, because unpaid carers make a vital contribution to the supply of care but their role can also affect their employment opportunities as well as their social and leisure activities.
Unpaid care means care provided to family members, friends, neighbours or others who are disabled, elderly or have long-term health problems. It does not include people providing general childcare.
Heléna Herklots, chief executive of Carers UK said: “Family life is changing as a result of our ageing population and the fact that people are living longer with disability and long-term ill-health.
“Too often the costs and pressures of caring for older or disabled loved ones can force families to give up work to care and lead to debt, poor health and isolation.
“In addition, as more families need help to care, social care support and disability benefits are being cut. This risks putting even more pressure on families, many of whom are already struggling to cope.”
[Source: BBC News]
How many of us take for granted a sound night’s sleep? And how many wouldn’t be able to get through the day without it?
Tracey’s husband’s serious health conditions mean he needs to sleep on a hospital bed surrounded by noisy medical equipment that fills their bedroom. Dave’s wife has cerebral palsy and spasms uncontrollably throughout the night, waking him constantly. Karen cares for her partner, a former serviceman, who has post-traumatic stress disorder and suffers night terrors.
These carers all need an extra room to sleep in because of the effects of ill-health or disability. Yet government changes to the ‘size criteria’ for Housing Benefit for people in social housing – the so-called ‘bedroom tax’ – means that 420,000 disabled people, their families and carers will have their housing benefit cut because they are considered to have a ‘spare’ room.
Government needs to understand that for families like this, these rooms are not ‘spare’ – they are essential.
Carers who care full-time for ill or disabled family members, or who juggle work and care – may need to sleep in another room just to get a few hours of sleep. This enables them to carry on caring or continue to work alongside looking after loved ones.
Disabled people may be unable to share a room with their husband, wife or partner, simply because their disability causes pain and discomfort which means neither of them can sleep properly. They might be unable to share a room if assistive equipment disrupts sleep.
Yet hundreds of thousands of families who need this extra space are facing cuts to their Housing Benefit – on average losing £13 a week.
For people already coping with the costs of ill-health and disability and many having given up work to care, this extra financial pressure could push them over the edge. Many will be unable to cover the shortfall and face falling into arrears, financial hardship and debt
The government’s advice is for people who are affected to move or ‘work a few more hours’. These options are not open to carers.
If you are caring round the clock for a severely disabled loved one, paid work may simply be impossible. Government has said clearly it does not want to force carers to stop caring and into work. It would be a terrible situation to put families in and would cost far more in the long term as local councils could have to step in to provide costly residential or homecare.
Yet moving into a smaller home is also often not an option. So many of these families’ homes have been heavily adapted for the older, ill or disabled person’s needs – often from the local authority purse. Where is the sense in forcing these people to move into properties which are too small for them and where alterations will simply need to be paid for again? Moving might also split carers and disabled people from support networks of neighbours, friends and families. Not to mention the risks of moving to the often fragile health of the disabled or ill person.
Yes, government has included an exemption for disabled people who needed a spare room for someone to stay overnight to look after them – but this this does not apply to carers who live with the people they care for. They need and deserve the same consideration.
Government figures show that, of the 660,000 people affected by the ‘bedroom tax’ 420,000, disabled people, their families and carers will be hit. Some extra funds have been made available to help those affected but our analysis shows that these ‘discretionary payments’ would help less than 40,000 (less than 10%) of the disabled people affected. Hundreds of thousands face crisis when these changes come into force in April.
The government has a chance with the forthcoming Budget to protect carers and their families from this cut. In a letter to the Chancellor and the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, Carers UK along with MS Society, Mencap, Macmillan Cancer Support, Disability Rights UK, Carers Trust and Contact a Family – urge them to take it.
[Source: Helena Herklots, The Huffington Post]
Anne Bonner
Anne is currently the ‘Acting Chair’ for Carers Centre Newcastle, she saw us through the transition to become an independent organisation in 2012. Anne has many years of experience in the charitable sector and is the current Manager of the Riverside Community Health Project.
Trevor Moon
Trevor has two grown up daughters, Hilary who has two boys aged 9 and 6 and Louise who has Learning Disabilities and lives with him and his wife Lesley. He took the opportunity to retire early from his job as a Business Change Project Manager and has always had a keen interest in Learning Disabilities and in the role and status of all Carers. Following on from a very positive personal experience Trevor has been involved with the Carers Centre Newcastle for around six years both as a Management Committee Member and enthusiastic supporter of the work the Centre does for carers. Since retiring Trevor has also become a Justice of the Peace and sits on a regular basis in Newcastle upon Tyne Magistrates Court .
Trevor is also a:
Lynne Gray
Lynne has been involved with carers issues and services ever since she joined the original Carers National Association in the 1980s. She was the secretary and chair of the Management Committee of the Carers Centre here at Saville Place from its opening, after a ten year campaign to secure our own premises. Now that the Carers Centre is a charity in its own right, we intend to go on supporting our carers in every way we can with the help of our dedicated staff and trustees.
Veronica Stonor
Veronica was a General Management Trainee with the NHS before going on to positions at St Mary’s Hospital Paddington and Great Ormond Street Hospital. She returned home to Newcastle to take on managing medical and elderly care services for Newcastle Upon Tyne Hospitals Trust. She then worked as Director of Administration at Ward Hadaway Law Firm, after which she left to concentrate on bringing up her four children and latterly caring for her mother who has Alzheimer’s and her father who has vascular dementia.
Maveen Pereira
Maveen Pereira, is Head of South Asia Programmes with Traidcraft Exchange, an international organisation promoting fair trade across the world.
Besides being a carer herself, she comes with over 30 years of international development and project management experience. She has worked with a range of vulnerable groups and is particularly keen to support the needs of ethnic communities in the United Kingdom.
Chris Mason
Chris is delighted and honoured to be selected as a new board member. Chris says, ‘Carers are very close to my heart’. Chris has cared for family members for many years and indeed, continues to do so. For 13 years he was a social worker, the latter years providing a social work service to people with cancer, their families, friends and carers.
Chris is currently employed with Newcastle City Council as a Communities Officer, a job that brings him into contact with all sections of the community ensuring that residents have a voice as to what they want to see happening in their communities. This includes carers!
The FREE ‘Carer’s Emergency Contact Scheme’ in Newcastle (adult service) is designed to give peace of mind by providing support to a person whose carer suddenly becomes unable to return and offer care in the usual way.
This could be because of a personal crisis such as a sudden illness, accident, unforeseen delay or any other issue that unexpectedly delays the carer in their return. Carers will be issued with a free card and emergency number. The British Red Cross will operate the card, 24 hours a day, seven days a week, all year.
All Carers who register will complete an emergency plan which is designed to help carers think ahead. The plan will state a secondary replacement for the carer and if the carer does not have this, the Red Cross can send a volunteer or staff member to make sure the person cared for is safe and their needs are met.
If you feel that you would benefit from this service and would like to find out more please call Linda Whittemore on 07713 385268 or email:
HSCNorthEast_Cumbria@redcross.org.uk.
Registration forms can also be obtained from the Carers Centre.
A two night break for carers that includes relaxing and fun activities.
This summer we are putting on the Shepherd’s Dene summer break as part of Carers Week 2013.
Shepherd’s Dene has had increasing success in the past and so we are doing it again in 2013. We are still accepting names from carers, people who have not been before will be given priority.
The cost is £120 per person.
Transport, food and linens are included.
Location: Shepherd’s Dene Retreat Centre, Riding Mill, Northumberland, NE44 6AF
Contact the Carers Centre to book a place 0191 260 3030
A two night break for carers that includes relaxing and fun activities.
Shepherd’s Dene has had increasing success in the past and so we are doing it again in 2013. We are still accepting names from carers, people who have not been before will be given priority.
The cost is £120 per person.
Transport, food and linens are included.
Location: Shepherd’s Dene Retreat Centre, Riding Mill, Northumberland, NE44 6AF
Contact the Carers Centre to book a place 0191 260 3030
Veronica Stonor (Trustee) and Rachel Parsons (staff member) from Carers Centre Newcastle have been chosen as the North East ambassadors to highlight young adult carers for the Carers Trust and Co-operative Charity of the year programme ‘About Time’.
Rachel and Veronica will be visiting different Co-operative branches in the area, so say hello if you spot them!
Read more about what we are doing and about the partnership below.
We’re in the news!
For more information about the programme please visit the following websites:
Newcastle Wellbeing for Life Board has produced a profile of the needs of people who live in the city. It is called ‘Know Your City’ and is principally based on research data but what people in Newcastle think about wellbeing and health is an important part of the picture too.
The Wellbeing for Life Board is asking people, as individuals or in groups, to take photos and/or to send quotes that answer three questions:
1. What is it about Newcastle that makes you feel healthy and happy?
2. What is it about Newcastle that makes you feel less happy/healthy?
3. What do you think you can do to make Newcastle a healthier and
happier place to be ?
Carers play a very important role in day-to-day life in Newcastle so we are asking carers to take part in this project so that carers voices and lives can be represented.
Here are some examples of what might help you to feel healthier and happier living in Newcastle to get you thinking:
• Having good neighbours
• Having a house that is warm and cosy with space for
everyone
• Feeling safe walking in your local park
• Knowing where to go when you need good advice with
money
• Never feeling helpless about what you should do about
your health
• Getting out to meet friends at a coffee morning
• Having access to healthy food
• Taking part in exercise classes that suit you
• Being confident to help and support others
Please deliver your photos and/or quotes to Customer Service Centres and Libraries or forward them to William.norman@newcastle.gov.uk by 15th March.
You can respond to the questions via social media – through the
@newcastlecc Twitter handle or via www.facebook.com/Newcastlecitycouncil
You can send ‘hard copy’ images and text to:
Will Mapplebeck
Room 161
Newcastle City Council
Civic Centre
NE1 8QH