Boss of Wigan carers' charity speaks of 12 months of change during pandemic

When Angela Allison took over the reins of Wigan and Leigh Carers Centre 12 months ago, she could not have predicted what lay ahead.
Watch more of our videos on Shots! 
and live on Freeview channel 276
Visit Shots! now

For the charity’s chief officer may have been full of ideas for how to support carers across the borough, but she had no idea a global pandemic was on its way.

It has been a busy year for Mrs Allison, as she looked at how services could be changed to help people, revamped the charity’s office and continued to champion the priceless work being done by carers.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

She said: “Within three months we had entered Covid and the lockdown. That was one of the first challenges.

Angela AllisonAngela Allison
Angela Allison

“The whole country has been significantly impacted.”

Mrs Allison, who lives in South Ribble, has previously worked in the NHS and social housing, including for Wigan and Leigh Housing.

But the mother-of-five also had a personal reason for wanting to take on the role at the carers’ centre - she is a parent-carer for her 19-year-old daughter, who has long-term medical conditions.

Mrs Allison said: “It’s working in Wigan, which I love, but it’s also supporting unpaid carers, which is very close to my heart and has been for 12 years since my daughter was diagnosed with her conditions.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

“My background and personal experience has really supported me in this role.

“In addition, the team I work with were already delivering a fantastic service.”

She began working at the Hindley-based charity last December and just a few months later, the country was put into lockdown by Prime Minister Boris Johnson in a bid to halt the spread of coronavirus.

“One of the first decisions we had to make was whether we could continue to deliver our services or would we have to close our services and centre and furlough all of our staff,” Mrs Allison said.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

“We decided we wanted to continue delivering our services and evolved very quickly using Zoom and Teams and got a new telephone system in.

“We looked at our services and started to deliver them quickly.”

Arrangements were put in place for staff to work from home where possible, to prevent the spread of coronavirus, and technology was used to support carers.

The charity had to look at what it could offer within the restrictions, with befriending phone and video calls made to carers and mindfulness walks organised in small groups and then one-to-one as the second lockdown came.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

Services were made available seven days a week, so there was always someone on hand to help when needed.

The centre eventually reopened in July and remained open through the second national lockdown in November, with services offered in person, by telephone and online.

And it was desperately needed, as 4,500 phone calls were made to the charity between August and October, compared to 1,200 to 1,500 in a typical quarter before coronavirus.

“That shows that the demand for the service has grown,” Mrs Allison said.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

Among the help on offer for carers is benefits advice, counselling, one-to-one support, reiki training, arts and crafts, a new bereavement group, dementia awareness training and well-being and stress management training.

The charity can also carry out a carers assessment, for which there is a budget for support if needed.

A key project this year was providing iPads to 10 carers without access to digital technology and teaching them how to use it, to ensure they can get any support they need, access courses on Zoom and do everyday tasks such as online shopping and sending emails. This was funded by the Carers’ Trust.

A total of £15,000 was spent on revamping the carers centre to ensure it was Covid-safe, with new flooring, decorating, a new reception desk with plexi-glass, a signing-in system, door guards, a coffee machine and hand sanitising stations.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

Mrs Allison was determined to keep the centre open if possible, so carers knew where they could get support if they needed it.

She hailed Wigan Council as being “fully supportive” of unpaid carers, but thinks the Government should have done more to help carers and recognise their vital contribution, particularly during the pandemic.

She said: “I think what we have realised in all this is that unpaid carers who need support are our invisible workforce and the Government hasn’t really recognised how valuable they are.

“Without them, the NHS and social care services would be impacted even more.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

“Our unpaid carers can still be working as well, they can have families of their own, and I think during Covid and as it continues, their lives have been exceptionally challenging.

“I know lots of carers have had to make the decision to give up work or could have become carers during Covid.

“The team wants to champion unpaid carers and get the recognition that they deserve.”

One way of doing that has been by introducing a more formal card with a photograph to identify people as carers.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

This is recognised by Greater Manchester Police and the charity has been lobbying supermarkets to recognise it too, so carers can access priority shopping slots made available to NHS workers during the pandemic.

Mrs Allison said: “It may be an unpaid carer is working or can’t leave the person they are caring for for long.

“It’s important if they have time to go to the supermarket that they can access it.”

As well as having businesses and other organisations recognise the work done by carers, Mrs Allison wants more people who look after a friend or family member to realise they are carers and access the help on offer.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

“Quite often people don’t realise they are a carer,” she said.

“They could be caring for their husband, wife, daughter or son but don’t realise there is a whole support mechanism there for them.”

It has been a busy 12 months, but Mrs Allison will certainly still have plenty to get her teeth into in 2021.

She is setting up a parent-carers group and hopes to strengthen relationships with other groups in the voluntary sector in Wigan, so carers can be signposted to the right place if the charity itself cannot help.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

It has also recently been announced that Wigan and Leigh Carers Centre will merge with Wigan and Leigh Young Carers, allowing them to pool resources and expertise and help any carer who needs support, young or old.

And the ongoing pandemic may yet bring more challenges.

But Mrs Allison says services will continue to evolve as needed to ensure carers get the support they need, and praised staff, volunteers and trustees for their efforts.

“We are going week to week, day to day, and as legislation comes out and carers highlight their needs, we are evolving our services.

“At some point, when we get on a more level playing field, we can project how the service looks over the next couple of years.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

“I think for everybody it’s very difficult to predict the future so we are evolving as guidance comes in.”

Wigan and Leigh Carers Centre is located at 3-5 Frederick Street in Hindley. To find out more, call 01942 705959 or go to www.wlcccarers.com.

Thanks for reading. If you value what we do and are able to support us, a digital subscription is just £1 for your first month. Try us today by clicking here