Headway Cardiff and South East Wales received just over £10,000 in funding from the Short Breaks Scheme that supported more than 430 short break activities.
Headway support carers of people with acquired brain injury (ABI) living in South Wales, providing information, peer-to-peer support and respite. The short breaks provided support to carers of people with ABI to have improved wellbeing through countering some of the negative impacts of caring for someone with ABI, including isolation, financial hardship, relationship breakdown, poor mental and physical health.
Hear Bethan talk to ITV Wales about her caring role and how Headway and the Short Breaks Scheme have helped her.
Carers were able to enjoy social, enjoyable, inclusive and accessible opportunities for time away from their caring responsibilities. They were able to enjoy activities readily available to the wider public but harder for them to access. These included trips to Barry Island, the National Botanical Gardens of Wales, the Millennium Centre and going out for afternoon tea. Headway also offered flexible opportunities to fit around caring responsibilities, including vouchers to dine in from Cote, for holistic therapy from Enerchi and home wellbeing boxes.
Headway also ran six monthly Family and Friends groups to enable carers to meet and form friendships with others who have been through similar experiences, and to benefit from being part of a non-judgemental, understanding and supportive community. In two of these sessions, carers had the opportunity to take part in yoga.
I value the family and friends support group. As I can’t leave my husband to go on holiday, the days out with Headway are really enjoyable and give me a day off.
- Carer
Headway also provided information booklets about different aspects of brain injury to enable carers to understand the consequences of ABI.
Rebecca Pearce, CEO Headway, tells us, “We are fortunate to have staff who work with carers, and the people they care for, daily, and are attuned to their needs. They were able to consider what was practical and possible. They planned realistic activities and treats that would transport carers away from their caring situation and allow them to focus on themselves but were not too long or far away to make them impractical to access alongside with their caring responsibilities.”
The project has enabled the expansion and development of the very warm and supportive community of carers associated with our organisation.
- Headway
These breaks have enabled carers to develop their resilience and sustain their relationship with the person they care for over time. They help them to find strength in linking in with others who have experienced similar sudden change and are supported to accept and adapt to the changes they have experienced.
“Carers of people with ABI can often become isolated from their friends and community because of practical issues relating to the person they care for, such as sensory disabilities or mobility issues”, Rebecca explains. “However, it is often the behaviour of the person they care for that most significantly impacts. This, coupled with often suddenly acquiring most of the responsibility for the financial, practical, and emotional wellbeing of the family unit, alongside the change within the dynamic of their key relationship, can make it unsustainable.”
The breaks help carers to develop coping strategies and to take some time out to be themselves, not to mention having something to look forward to and having some fun for a change.
One carer who enjoyed an evening out at a Ball says, "I had a fabulous time at the ball. It was such a treat to be able to get dressed up and spoilt with a lovely meal. I thoroughly enjoyed dancing my cares away for a night! Headway’s Family & Friends evenings have been so valuable to me. Through them I’ve met someone else whose partner has been similarly affected by his brain injury and who has shared the same experiences. This has been so helpful to me in navigating my way through things."
Rebecca concludes, “All the trips, events and treats were extremely well received by the carers who participated. We’ve had wonderful feedback and participants have told us that looking forward to and enjoying these breaks have been restorative for them and given them the strength to carry on.”