On this page:

• Who is a carer?
• Our services for carers in Reading & West Berkshire
• Events
• News
• Contact us

Who is a carer?

A carer is someone who supports a relative or friend of any age fitting at least one of the following descriptions:

• elderly and frail
• physically disabled
• has a learning disability
• has mental health issues
• has a history of substance misuse
• has a serious health condition

Our services for carers in Reading & West Berkshire

Carers Hub

Our Reading & West Berkshire Carers Hub can either directly provide or assist local carers to access:

• Health and wellbeing support
• Free health and well-being memberships
• Access to carers breaks
• Access to carers support groups and peer support
• Free training and caring support
• Carers grants
• and much more

Plus, you can find a number of other sources of information, including online resources, on our information and advice webpage.

To find out more, please contact us.

Get in touch

Carer's Assessment – Reading

In Reading we have recently started doing Carers Assessments for the local authority. A Carer’s Assessment is an opportunity to focus on how caring affects you.

Following completion of your Carer’s Assessment, you may be offered advice and support to help you manage caring and look after your own health – as well as information about local organisations and groups supporting carers, and support to put services in place for you or the person you care for. 

Find out more about Carer's Assessments

Young carers – Reading

Brighter Futures for Children supports children under 18 years who have extra responsibilities at home because of a disabled sibling or parent with support needs. There are groups for young people in three age groups: 6–9 years, 5–11 years and 13–18 years.

For more information, mail [email protected] or call 0118 937 3641.

Carer's emergency plan

A concern often reported to us by carers is "who will look after the person I care for, if I am suddenly unavailable?".

We can support you to create an 'emergency plan' for such circumstances. The plan would set out who should be contacted and what needs to be done to make sure the person you care for is safe and supported in your absence. It provides peace of mind that support is available if you are delayed, taken ill, stuck in traffic or involved in an accident. 

For more information, contact us or speak to your social worker.

In case of emergency (ICE) numbers

Make a list of telephone numbers to contact in case of emergency. Keep a copy of this list in your purse or wallet and by the telephone of the person you care for. Save the ICE numbers in your phone as ICE1, ICE2 etc so the format is easily recognisable.

• In a serious emergency where life or property is threatened, dial 999 to call the emergency services
• Emergency social work duty team: 01344 786543
• Out of hours mental health crisis line: 0300 365 99 99
• GP out-of-hours service: 111

The Reading Family Carers Card

If you are a carer living in the Borough of Reading, you may wish to apply for The Reading Family Carers Card. This free card, supported by Reading Borough Council, will identify you as a family carer in order to help shorten the time you might have to spend queueing for a shop, a pharmacy or even a health appointment. Find out more about the Reading Family Carers Card.

If you'd like our assistance to apply for a carers card, please contact us. Alternatively, you can contact one of the following organisations:

Mencap	Email [email protected] or telephone 0118 966 2518
Age UK Berkshire	Email [email protected] or telephone 0118 9594242
Berkshire Cancer Centre	Telephone 0118 322 8700 (cards will be available to Reading-based patients actively receiving treatment from the service)

Events

We host regular support groups, meetings and drop-in sessions, aimed at helping carers access information and support relevant to your personal situation.

We also run annual events for carers in celebration of Carers Week, Carers Rights Day, Young Carers Awareness Day, and more.

Please note: to help keep everyone safe during the Coronavirus pandemic our clubs may be running differently than usual. For example, groups may take place at different times or locations, have reduced availability, or even be held online.

View our upcoming online events

News

You can view our recent newsletters here and follow us on Facebook and Instagram for more news from across the organisation.

Want to receive regular updates from the Hub? Send us a message and ask to be added to our mailing list.

Contact us

Our Carers Hub team is available 9am-5pm, Monday to Friday to answer queries and provide information and support.

For any queries, please contact us using the details below.

To refer yourself to use our services, please fill in the downloadable Referral Form and email or post it to us:

Email: [email protected]

Local office: 14 Albury Close, Tilehurst, Reading, RG30 1BD.

Telephone: 0118 324 7333 

Return to the main Berkshire Carers Hub webpage