North Tyneside Carers’ Partnership Board is responsible for raising awareness of carers issues and improving health and social care services in North Tyneside for carers. The board’s membership includes decision makers from NHS providers, North Tyneside Council, local carers voluntary sector organisations – North Tyneside Carers’ Centre, Healthwatch North Tyneside and the Parent Carer Forum.

At their recent meeting the board agreed six recommendations, in response to the research findings from the adult carers survey in 2021. The following areas will be worked on over the next twelve months: 

1. Review respite care provision to understand what is available, the eligibility criteria and the number of carers accessing respite.
2. Develop a North Tyneside Emergency Contingency Plan to ensure a coordinated response to supporting carers, in the event of another pandemic.
3. Review the adult carers assessment/support pathway and develop an improvement plan.
4. Review carers involvement in hospital discharge and transfers to another care setting or back home.
5. Review communications from services/organisations so that they include support available for carers.
6. Update the Carers Partnership Board Action Plan to reflect the recommendations.

The board have arranged a conference for professionals during national Carers Week in June to highlight carers experiences of caring during the pandemic and understand what support is available for carers in the borough. Four workshops will run in the afternoon to share good practice and identify what professionals could do differently to improve experiences in relation to: 

• Young Carers Needs Assessments
• Parent Carers
• Supporting Carers in Primary Care and Hospital Discharge 

If you have any queries about the work of the Carers Partnership Board, or wish to share your experiences with us, please email enquiries@ntcarers.co.uk or contact us on 643 2298.