Carers Week 2023: More than 30 activities to be held across Wigan to recognise those who care

Wigan and Leigh Carers have teamed up with Wigan Borough Carers (Wigan Council) and other organisations for an extended version of Carers Week, which will run until Friday, June 9.

Carers of all ages will be able to take part in events, including information and awareness roadshows, drop-ins, therapeutic activities, a music festival and the launch of a new carers café club.

Carers Week is an annual awareness campaign recognising the UK’s unpaid carers.

In Wigan, more than 31,000 people were looking after someone without being paid when the census was carried out in March 2021 – 10.1 per cent of people over five years old.

Bernadette Ashcroft, chief executive officer of Wigan and Leigh Carers, said: “Carers Week is an opportunity to say ‘thank you’ to all our unpaid and family carers in Wigan. We would like communities across Wigan to pledge their support and come together to recognise the huge contribution unpaid carers make to society.

"Wigan and Leigh Carers are excited to share the Carers Week 2023 events programme. As a change to previous years, we have worked with partner organisations to extend the offer of events and activities over a two-week period – Tuesday, May 30 to Friday, June 9 – to try and reach as many carers in their local communities as possible."

The new Carers Café Club will be launched during Carers Week, bringing together a network of community cafés offering warm and welcoming spaces for carers and their loved ones.

Regular events will be hosted in these venues to make accessing support easier for carers and they will receive a complimentary drink by showing their Wigan and Leigh Carers emergency card.

Ms Ashcroft said: “We hope the activities will be therapeutic for carers, be informative, bring joy and companionship, and it is our way to say ‘thank you for all that you do’.”

To find out more about Carers Week in Wigan, visit Wigan and Leigh Carers’ website and Wigan Council’s website. Alternatively, call Wigan and Leigh Carers 01942 697885.