STRATFORD MP Manuela Perteghella has pledged to support the 7,784 unpaid carers living in her constituency.
She attended an event in Parliament recently and met with unpaid carers to hear about and better understand their experiences of caring, how carers can be better identified and recognised, and the support they urgently need.
The event was organised by Carers UK and supported by seven other Carers Week charities – Age UK, Carers Trust, Motor Neurone Disease Association, The ME Association, Oxfam GB, Rethink Mental Illness, and The Lewy Body Society.
Together these organisations are calling on the Government to develop a new National Carers Strategy – the first in 16 years – to ensure that all carers get the support they need.
Dr Perteghella said: “Unpaid carers in Stratford on Avon provide essential support to family members and friends, often without any respite breaks or support for themselves. The value of the care they provide is staggering – it adds up to the equivalent of a second NHS with a total of 5.7 million people providing unpaid care throughout the UK.
“It is so important that their efforts are properly recognised and that they are get the help they need to stay well themselves and in turn care safely and well for their loved ones.
“I pledge to stand up for carers in parliament to ensure unpaid carers in Stratford-on-Avon are connected to the right support and getting the recognition they need. I back the call for more Government action in support of all unpaid carers, including the development of a new National Carers Strategy.”
