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Dear <<First Name>>,
Welcome to the fourth edition of our Young Carer Newsletter! If you have missed any of our issues, you can view them here.
This newsletter, it's all about December! Whether you celebrate Christmas, or another tradition, we have lots of things for you to get involved with throughout December, including finding the best places to use your Carers Card throughout the winter months! As always, if you need some support, just give us a call on 0800 368 8349.
Best wishes,
Abi Squires
Young Carer Coordinator, Carer Support Dorset (CSD)
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Introducing...Anna!
Anna is the Manager of Carer Support Dorset and oversees all the work we do for Young Carers and Adult Carers.
Anna is so excited about Christmas that she put her tree up in November this year! Anna loves the glitz, glamour and tinsel around Christmas and recently visited the West End in London to see a show where her eldest son is Stage Manager. She would like to wish you all a very Happy Christmas!
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Did you see us at Bridport Arts Centre in Novemeber?
We have been working with LUNG Theatre, who are a campaign-led verbatim theatre company. They put on theatre productions that aim to make important voices heard, like those of the Young Carers who helped to create the 'Who Cares' show. We attended the show on 12 November along with students from The Sir John Colfox School and The Woodroffe School. It was really insightful, powerful and a privilege to watch! Missed it? Listen to the Radio 4 version here.
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Carer Support Dorset Opening Hours over Christmas
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Local Libraries
Libraries across Dorset offer a whole host of free events for all the family. They have specific events for the festive season. Find out what is going on in your local library by keeping up here. If you don't fancy attending any events at your local library, it is always worth having a free library card to borrow books and listen to online audiobooks and stories. Most libraries also have computers if you need a space to go online away from home.
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Winter in Dorset offers loads of different activities for families and young people throughout Dorset over the winter holidays. You can meet new people, learn new skills and have a fun break on your holidays from school too. Winter in Dorset activities are free to students who receive free school meals at school, but check here for all the information you need. Activities that are running can be found on this website.
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Mental Health Apps
Sometimes the winter holidays can be tough and can feel overwhelming for a lot of young carers who are balancing caring with being off school/college over the break. CAMHS (Children and Adolescent Mental Health Services) has a whole host of mental health apps that you can download to help you with your wellbeing, which might help whilst you are at home over the holidays. Find the list here.
We recommend the apps Calm Harm for anyone who is struggling to manage the urge to self-harm, and Chill Panda to help you to relax and manage your worries.
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Carers Rights Day - 25 November
We celebrated Carers Rights Day on 25 November with lots of other charities and unpaid carers across Dorset. Healthwatch Dorset released a really insightful story from a young carer for Carers Rights Day. The Young Carer talks about the support he got in Dorset and what a difference it made to his life. Read Lee's story here.
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Carers Trust
A group of young carers created a short film in 2021 about the issues young carers are experiencing. They participated in training with Media Education and created a storyboard for their film. Filming this remotely, the group conducted peer led interviews with young carers across Scotland. Their film focuses on themes important to young carers including education, respite and loneliness.
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EDAS & REACH Drug and Alcohol service
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EDAS is a support service that offers help to anyone who has a substance misuse problem and families/carers of those who are living with a substance misuse problem.
REACH offers a confidential service for under 24s affected by drugs or alcohol. Take a look at their website to find out more about what they offer or get in touch by calling 0800 043 4656 (press option 2).
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Young Dorset is a charity that works with young people to provide learning and development opportunities that help them to improve their life and employability skills for the future, as well as gain valuable qualifications. Get in contact with them via their website, or give them a call on 07854 434575 to find out more!
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Read our new blogs about what you can do over the winter months with your Carers Card as well as lots of Christmas themed activities across Dorset! Whether you want to grab some discounts for Christmas presents, take a break over a Gingerbread Latte or go out for a fun day with your family, the Carers Card can help you by offering great discounts across Dorset. Find out more about it here.
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We are always looking for input from our young carers on what they would like to see from Carer Support Dorset. If you have a few spare minutes, please fill out the form by clicking on the WWW button to give your opinion on what you would like to see in the next newsletters and some feedback for us. It will only take 2 minutes of your time and we would really appreciate it!
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If you need to get in touch with us, you can call or email us using our details below.
Call: 0800 368 8349
Email: admin@carersupportdorset.co.uk
From the team at Carer Support Dorset
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