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Working & Caring
January 2021

Welcome to the first edition of our new working carers newsletter. Whether you're currently in paid employment as well as caring, looking to get back into work or volunteering, or perhaps interested in finding out more about the issues affecting working carers, I hope this monthly newsletter will be helpful.

By now I hope you've seen that Signpost's three year employment project, Work With Us, has officially launched! Signpost have wanted to offer more support to working carers for a long time and I know everyone's excited to get the ball rolling. Our website now has a dedicated section about caring and employment, which you can find here.

Thank you to everyone that came to our Carers Rights Day launch event (on Zoom) in November and to all 130 respondents who completed our working carers survey last year. We'll be sharing your responses about working and caring in these monthly newsletters, beginning with your views on loneliness at work, below. Your responses also helped us think about our future activities. It's clear that carers would like the opportunity to meet with other carers and when we're allowed, we'll be arranging monthly meet-ups and more. We're really keen to make our current services more accessible to people who can't always access support between 9-5.

As well as sharing resources for carers currently in work, it's also important for us to support carers and former carers looking for new opportunities and we've linked to some great resources and initiatives in this newsletter which might support you in your next steps - whether that's because you want to return to work, or you're thinking about changing jobs. Finally, every month we want to share your story, beginning with Alison's story in this edition.

I appreciate your time is precious, but if you do manage to get any downtime I'd highly recommend listening to the podcasts produced by Carers' Hearts CIC, one of which is linked below. Don't forget, if you're struggling, in need of support or you just want to chat, Signpost are always at the end of the phone.

Best wishes,

Rebecca
Work With Us Co-ordinator

Your work

Resources

New podcast

We were pleased to see this month's Carers' Hearts CIC podcast focussed on "How to speak to your employer about being a carer."

The podcast is only 15 minutes long and explores how to start or continue a conversation with your line manager or employer about being a working carer and why this is important.

Listen to the podcast

Work and coronavirus

If you’re having to go into work at the moment, you might be facing some difficult experiences and emotions that are affecting your mental health.

Mind have created some useful information to help, including tips for understanding difficult feelings, taking care of your mental wellbeing and where to find support.

Find out more

Flexible working

Balancing work with caring is challenging - but we know flexible working can help. Carers UK have produced a new “Let’s talk about flexible working” guide containing practical information to help you start the conversation with your employer. They have also produced a selection of videos covering myths around flexible working, where to start and how to communicate your flexible working request.

Please contact Rebecca if you'd like to chat through your options or would like support making your request.

View the resources

Free employment advice

During this period of uncertainty, many people across Greater Manchester are worried about their employment, whether it be their employment rights, redundancy, pay cuts, to terms or disputes. We know that working carers have been impacted and many are worried about what the future holds.

The Growth Company and Citizens Advice Manchester have joined forces with a network of legal experts to ensure that Greater Manchester’s workers hit hardest by the pandemic can access free legal advice.

Employment Legal Advice is a new, free service involving legal experts from eleven firms giving something back and donating their time on a pro bono basis.

Find out more

Your story

Alison's story

Alison is a part-time Teaching Assistant at a Stockport school. She also cares for her husband, David, who has Multiple Sclerosis.

This month Alison shared her story with us. Thank you Alison.

If you'd like to share your story about working and caring, looking for work or leaving work in order to care for a loved one, please do get in touch.

Read Alison's story

Loneliness

Alison is one of many carers we hear from that feels lonely at work and we asked about this in our survey last year. Whilst we were pleased to see that many of you don't feel lonely at work, the responses were varied and many carers do feel lonely at work which shows how important support could be.

"I feel lonely at work"
(Responses from 106 current working carers)

A number of organisations in Stockport have worked together to create a Loneliness Support Toolkit which you can download here.

Your future

There are a number of great courses on Future Learn that can be accessed for FREE, including these:

Building Your Career in Tomorrow’s Workplace

Learn about the many factors shaping tomorrow’s working world and create a brighter future by planning your career direction.

Find out more

Career Coaching for Women: Supercharge Your Career

Get the support and skills you need to realise your professional ambitions with AllBright Academy’s career development course.

Find out more

Wave of Change

The Goodness Collective CIC and PIE: Pursuing Individual Excellence have teamed up to bring women who are not currently working in Stockport a programme of online events to allow the time, space and the support needed to explore ideas for creating a future that works.

The Wave of Change programme is free to attend and the next intake will be in February. Contact Simone at thegoodnesscollective@outlook.com for more details.

If there's anything you think other carers would enjoy reading or find helpful in future newsletters, please get in touch.

This newsletter has been produced by Signpost Stockport for Carers as part of the Work With Us project.