ALMOST £3m in extra benefits have been claimed in a single year by carers thanks to the efforts of a charity that has been advising the community successfully for the past ten years.
Durham County Carers Support has also helped an additional 2,845 people this year whose lives are dominated by the unofficial role of caring for family or friends.
The annual general meeting of the charity, which covers Darlington and County Durham, heard that DCCS had secured £32,000 in grants for clients and was busier than ever in the aftermath of the pandemic, the war in Ukraine and the resulting cost of living crisis.
Trustee Janet Potts told guests at Spennymoor Town Hall: “As we celebrate our tenth birthday it is a time of huge challenges but our amazing team has found ways of being proactive and innovative in helping carers.
Treasurer Colin Ranson added: “Rises in the cost of food, fuel, utilities and mortgages have had a massive impact on our customers and it is going to be particularly challenging moving forward as local authorities consider efficiencies.
“DCCS has pulled out all the stops in managing its finances with the support of a host of fundraising activities. We are now looking at future-proofing the organisation to face the financial challenges that come our way.”
Chief executive Jenni Wood had high praise for the charity’s staff, 271-strong membership, supporters and volunteers and the resilience of the region’s carers.
“They have got through COVID so far but they still have to face caring for their loved ones 24 hours a day and that can be hugely challenging,” she said.
“I have been looking at what we have achieved in the past ten years and it has been staggering.
“When the five small carers organisations merged into DCCS ten years ago they helped 8,500 people. We now have 24,000 registered carers in County Durham and Darlington which is massive.”
She said the pandemic and cost of living crisis had accelerated developments including:
- The keeping in touch project, which had made 1,903 calls in the past year
- The carer friendly employer programme
- The mental health discharge project
- Mental health East Durham
- Joining the England’s Greenest Region initiative
- Providing specialist support for parent carers, funded by the Masonic Charitable Foundation
- A raft of courses and training opportunities
- A connecting carers initiative
- A money matters project
- Organising carer breaks.
“The 32,124 hours of volunteering has been amazing and we could not do what we do without them. More than 11,500 hours of counselling were also delivered to 3,000 carers.
“We have completed 10,000 benefits checks, where we help fill in the forms for people, resulting in £26m in annual income for carers which is staggering. We have also issued 20,000 care discount cards and accessed 89,000 grants. The £160,000 of donations and fundraising have enabled us to support our counselling services and develop the care and well-being fund. Every penny goes to the frontline to help carers.
“More than 7,500 people have come to us based on recommendations and since 2017 we have been supporting thousands of carers in Darlington.
“At the same time we have reduced our operating costs. We used to have six offices and are now based in Spennymoor, which has helped us make considerable savings. Most importantly, we have listened to carers’ needs making sure their voices are heard. The efforts have been huge and everyone has pulled together which is fantastic.”
- To mark the charity’s 10th anniversary a special raffle is offering the chance to win an iPhone 13, or £250, or many other prizes including spa days and trips out, to help raise money for its Carer Wellbeing Fund. Tickets are £1. For more details visit www.dccarers.org/fundraising/10-year-anniversary-cash-raffle/.