Witney News - Council grant for Carers Centre

Council grant for Carers Centre

West Oxfordshire District Council has agreed a grant of £2,000 to the North and West Oxfordshire Carers Centre.

The Centre is an independent charity providing free information, advice and support to those looking after someone who because of illness, disability or frailty cannot manage without help. Around 600 new unpaid carers are helped each year in addition to a caseload of approximately 3,000 clients.

Individual support and respite is also provided for young carers, under-18. Many carers are very young and the Centre helps them ‘have a break’ through fun clubs and arranging outings to theme parks, sports and leisure centres.

Cllr Jill Dunsmore, Cabinet Member for Communities said, “Carers give an enormous amount of their time to help others, many sacrificing their own health, finances, work and social life to help a loved one. The number of unpaid carers of all ages is increasing as the population becomes older. We are indebted to the Carers Centre for providing such an important support service and I am pleased that West Oxfordshire District Council is able to provide a grant to help.”

Core funding for the Centre is obtained from a central government grant and from the PCT. This is supplemented by additional funds from Oxfordshire County Council, Cherwell District Council and West Oxfordshire District Council.