HRH The Princess Royal will meet with carers, volunteers, members of staff and funders when she visits The Princess Royal Trust East Lothian Carers Centre on Thursday 10 February.
The centre moved to its new premises on High Street, Musselburgh in May last year and the visit of The Princess Royal, who is President of The Princess Royal Trust for Carers (The Trust), will highlight the wide range of services on offer to East Lothian’s carers and the necessity of their continuation.
The Princess Royal will arrive at the new Carers’ Centre where she will meet with Florence Burke, Director for Scotland of The Princess Royal Trust for Carers, Carers of East Lothian Chair Margaret McKay, and Manager Tony Segall.
Mrs McKay will introduce The Princess Royal to the centre’s staff and some of the carers for whom the service provides vital help, support and encouragement.
Carers of East Lothian delivers quality services to more than 1,000 carers in the East Lothian area.
The services for carers include providing information on all aspects of caring, help to understand how social care systems work, support to access respite and short break, a confidential ‘listening ear’, help with the benefits system, outreach services and the chance to meet others in a similar position.
Other important elements of the centre’s work include carer training and giving carers a voice in how local services are planned.
The centre works in partnership with East Lothian Council, NHS Lothian and various charitable trusts to deliver services that meet the needs of carers, many of whom live in remote areas and have limited access to mainstream services.
To commemorate the visit, The Princess Royal will unveil a plaque and will be presented with flowers by Eilish, 6, who is the centre manager’s daughter.
Centre manager Tony Segall said: “Our new Carers’ Centre gives us so much more space than the old one, allowing us to help many more carers individually and host more support groups and training courses.
“In addition, we are pleased to be able to offer a local base for Alzheimer Scotland and Lothian Centre for Inclusive Living, and we look forward to other partner organisations using the centre in the near future.”
For further information, please contact Emma Baird, Press and PR Manager, on 0141 285 7938/07791 230261 or email: ebaird@carers.org
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Media Invitation:
Press photographers are welcome to take photographs of HRH The Princess Royal upon her arrival outside The Princess Royal Trust East Lothian Carers Centre, 94 High Street, Musselburgh EH21 7EA.
All press who would like to attend will need to apply for a pass by contacting Emma Baird on the above number or by email by Friday 4 February. Photographs of the event will be available for media use after – contact Emma Baird as detailed previously with any requirements.
Interviews:
Journalists who would like to interview Tony Segall, manager of The Princess Royal Trust East Lothian Carers Centre, Margaret McKay, chair of the Carers’ Centre or a carer should contact Emma Baird on the number above.
Notes to editors:
1) Established in 1996, Carers of East Lothian (a network member of The Princess Royal Trust for Carers) provides a wide range of support services to more than 1,000 carers in the East Lothian area. However, there are an estimated 12,500 carers in East Lothian who are caring for someone who is unable to manage without help and support, many of whom don’t recognise themselves as carers and are unaware of the support that is available to them. The centre contact details are: 0131 665 0135/ email: centre@coel.org.uk
2) The Princess Royal Trust for Carers is one of the largest providers of comprehensive carers support services in the UK. Through its unique network of 144 independently-managed Carers’ Centres, 89 young carers’ services and interactive websites, www.carers.org and www.youngcarers.net, The Trust currently provides quality information, advice and support services to more than 424,000 carers, including approximately 28,500 young carers.
3) In Scotland, The Princess Royal Trust for Carers currently helps more than 49,000 adult and more than 4,000 young carers in Scotland to cope with their caring role through a network of 29 Carers’ Centres and 24 young carers’ services.
4) A carer is someone who, without payment, provides help and support to a partner, child, relative, friend or neighbour, who could not manage without their help because of age, physical or mental illness, addiction or disability. Carers are more than twice as likely to suffer ill health than non carers and 72 per cent of carers are financially worse off because of their caring role.
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Contact: Emma Baird
Phone: 0141 285 7938/07791 230261
Email: ebaird@carers.org
Website: http://www.carers.org
