From 10 to 16 June, we celebrated Carers Week to highlight the importance of Glasgow’s unpaid carers.

Carers Week is an annual campaign to raise awareness of caring, highlight the challenges unpaid carers face and recognise the contribution they make to families and communities. This year’s theme, ‘Caring About Equality’, shined a light on the significant inequalities unpaid carers face, from increased risks of poverty and poor health to social isolation and a lack of access to opportunities.

Millions of people across the UK care, unpaid, for a friend or family member who due to illness, disability, a mental health condition or addiction cannot cope without their support.

Having a week dedicated to unpaid carers was an opportunity for our Health and Social Care Partnership (HSCP) to engage with both staff and the public to ensure that people who care for others know about the help and support that’s available to them.

In Glasgow, our Local Carers Centres raised awareness and organised activities for people who provide everyday unpaid support to friends, family and neighbours who can’t manage otherwise. The Glasgow South Carers Centre hosted celebratory events for the carers they support. This included a carers luncheon, afternoon wellbeing sessions throughout the week, health walks, samba drumming sessions and much more.

To further mark Carers Week, we launched our new Carer Strategy 2025 to 2028. This strategy sets out our vision for Glasgow as a carer aware, carer friendly city where carers are recognised, listened to and supported to live well, while continuing in their caring roles.

Alongside the strategy, we’re also proud to launch a new video, which powerfully captures what it means for a city to be carer aware. The video highlights the voices of local carers and the work being done across services, communities and organisations to build a more inclusive, supportive environment for carers. You can watch the video on our HSCP’s YouTube Channel.

Fred Beckett, Carers Lead for our HSCP recognised the invaluable contribution of unpaid carers in Glasgow all year round. Fred said: “Carers Week is such an important time for all the carers in Glasgow to be recognised for all that they do every single day. If you’re caring for someone, remember that you’re not alone and our carers centres are there to support you. Get in contact with your local carer centre for more information or self-refer yourself by using the information below. There’s help out there for you so please reach out.”

If you want to know more about information and supports available to carers looking after someone in Glasgow, or want to help make Glasgow a carer friendly city, please visit www.yoursupportglasgow.org/carers.