Supporting people who care for family and friends
This week (8th – 14th June) is Carers Week 2026. Carers Week is a national campaign to raise awareness of caring, highlighting the challenges unpaid carers face, and recognise the contribution they make to families and communities. At Carers of East Lothian, we are proud to be supporting this year’s campaign, which focuses on the … Read more
11th – 17th May is Mental Health Awareness Week. The Mental Health Foundation have chosen Action as this year’s theme because, while awareness is vital, real change comes when we take action too. They are asking people to join them in taking action to support good mental health. Even small actions can help us feel hopeful and … Read more
Carers Week is running from 8th – 14th June. The theme of the national campaign in 2026 is Building Carer Friendly Communities, highlighting the impact carer friendly communities can have in making a real and lasting difference to the lives of carers everywhere. Carers of East Lothian will be running a range of events throughout … Read more
Please find a list of resources and factsheets about different benefits in Scotland. Easy read factsheet about Carer Support Payment Scotland: https://www.socialsecurity.gov.scot/publications/2025/04/carer-support-payment-factsheet-easy-read Easy read factsheets about different benefits from Social Security Scotland: https://www.socialsecurity.gov.scot/publications?cat=filter&assist=easyread&page=1&sort=date Easy read factsheets from DWP about Universal Credit: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/easy-read-universal-credit Social Security Scotland benefit factsheets that are available in alternative languages: https://www.socialsecurity.gov.scot/translated-resources Social … Read more
We are celebrating our 30th anniversary this year at Carers of East Lothian. You might have heard us mentioning pearls in relation to our 30th anniversary celebrations. This is because pearls are traditionally associated with 30 – year anniversaries. And like pearls, unpaid carers are valuable and often hidden from view. Using pearls as part … Read more
During February and March 2026, the East Lothian Health and Social Care Partnership (ELHSCP) consulted the public on their draft Local Carers Strategy 2026–2030, which is East Lothian’s third local carers strategy. The strategy is described as setting out a shared vision, aspirations, and ambitions for unpaid carers in East Lothian. It also outlines the … Read more
On Thursday April 2nd 2026, Carers of East Lothian hosted a hustings. The hustings were organised to give carers a chance to hear directly from local candidates standing in the Scottish elections in May 2026. Carers were invited to submit questions to Carers of East Lothian that they would like posed to candidates. A selection … Read more
My name is Karen. I support my husband Dave, who has terminal cancer. He was diagnosed with multiple myeloma in 2020. He also has neuropathy and COPD. When this all happened, it was during COVID. He couldn’t drive. I had to drive him everywhere, there were lots of treatments and he became quite unwell, so … Read more
Our amazing group of dedicated fundraising volunteers have collected dozens of fantastic prizes including items for a £200+ Christmas Hamper (which has a butchers voucher for Christmas dinner for 4), £50 Lobster Shack/Rocketeer voucher, Bass Rock trip, lots of meals out, days out, activities, wellbeing, hair and beauty vouchers. See below for more information about … Read more
As a carer, you have a right to be involved in the discharge process when the person you care for is in hospital. This means staff must invite your views about the discharge, take your views into account when planning the discharge and inform you in advance when the discharge will take place. To mark … Read more