Falkirk Health and Social Care Partnership are developing a new Falkirk Carers Strategy. Your feedback will help shape the final strategy and how progress is measured over the coming years.
Please follow the link to share your views: Falkirk Carers Strategy | Participate+
The consultation will be open until Sunday 13 September.
NHS Forth Valley is developing a new Quality, Safety & Experience Plan to support the delivery of their 10-year Population Health and Care Strategy. This Plan will set out how they will continue to improve the quality, safety and experience of everyone who uses NHS Forth Valley’s services.
We will welcome Jennifer Brisbane, Knowledge Facilitator and Lucy Atalla, Quality Improvement Advisor from NHS Forth Valley, who are seeking your help to shape this new plan. This consultation session will provide an opportunity to discuss the emerging priorities for the Plan, share your experiences and perspectives, and help shape the actions they take to improve quality, safety and experience across NHS Forth Valley. They would like to hear what is working well, where improvements are needed, and what matters most to you. Your feedback will help ensure the final Plan reflects local needs and priorities and is informed by the people who use, deliver and support their services.
There will also be further opportunities to contribute throughout the development process to ensure local feedback is reflected in the final plan.
Details:
For unpaid carers in the Falkirk district, who are registered with the Carers Centre
Monday 7 September 2026
From 10 am to 12 noon
In person at the Falkirk and Clackmannanshire Carers Centre or via Zoom
We are pleased to welcome Kara Connor, Primary Care Mental Health Team Leader at Falkirk Community Hospital, who is keen to hear your views and experiences of local mental health services. Kara will also provide information about the support available through the Primary Care Mental Health Team and explain how people can access these services.
Details:
For unpaid carers in the Falkirk district, who are registered with the Carers Centre Thursday 20 August 2026 From 1.30 pm to 3.30 pm In person at the Falkirk and Clackmannanshire Carers Centre or via Zoom
We will welcome Gordon MacKenzie, Localities Service Lead for Falkirk’s Health and Social Care Partnership (HSCP), who let us know more about changes and updates that are being made regarding the upcoming respite review.
Please register by 1 pm on Tuesday 11 August; however, if you require a translator, please let us know at least 2 weeks in advance.
Thursday 13 August 2026 From 1 pm to 3 pm In person only at the Falkirk and Clackmannanshire Carers Centre or via Zoom
The Government has launched a new consultation on employment rights for unpaid carers. This is a significant opportunity to influence future support for the millions of unpaid carers who are juggling paid employment with their caring responsibilities.
Carers UK has long called for stronger rights for working carers, and this consultation provides a crucial chance to make the case for change. Importantly, this includes the introduction of a new statutory right to paid Carer’s Leave amongst others.
Through the consultation, the Government is keen to hear from both individuals and employers. Personal experiences can make a real difference in helping policymakers understand the challenges of trying to balance paid work and care.
The consultation closes on Tuesday 1 September 2026. You can find out more about the consultation here, including other ways to submit your response (email or post).
If you have any questions about the consultation, please do not hesitate to contact policy@carersuk.org.
Complete the consultation here.
We will welcome Colin Scott, Community Response Co-ordinator from Hourglass, a charity dedicated to preventing harm, abuse and exploitation of older people across the UK. With more than 25 years’ experience and expertise, Hourglass’ mission is to listen, advise and support vulnerable older people and all those affected throughout the UK.
In Scotland, Hourglass also campaign for policy and legislative change to improve protections for older people, working with the Scottish Government and other partners to promote safer ageing and reduce abuse, neglect and financial exploitation.
Colin will talk about the services and supports they provide to protect older people. Every Falkirk unpaid carer is welcome to attend. Regardless of your age or caring role, your insights, experiences, and views can help create a richer and more meaningful discussion for everyone.
Please register by 1 pm on Tuesday 4 August; however, if you require a translator, please let us know at least 2 weeks in advance.
Thursday 6 August 2026 From 10 am to 12 noon In person only at the Falkirk and Clackmannanshire Carers Centre or via Zoom
If you care for someone affected by alcohol and/or drug use, this research may be of interest to you. April Shaw and Greig Inglis, lecturers from the University of the West of Scotland (UWS), will be joining us to present their initial findings from the research titled ‘Behind the Scenes: Understanding the role of unpaid carers looking after people affected by alcohol and other drug use.’
They will be seeking your insights on whether the presented findings accurately reflect people’s experiences and whether there’s anything missing from this research.
More information about the research:
Carers Trust, Scottish Families Affected by Alcohol and Drugs (SFAD), and the University of the West of Scotland (UWS) have carried out interviews with people who provide unpaid care to someone affected by alcohol and/or drug use. The primary aims of this work are to:
1. Understand the lived experiences of carers who care for a person with substance use problems in Scotland.
2. Inform the development of supports and interventions as well as local and national policy and practice.
The recommendations are aimed at local and national policy makers and organisations involved in developing and delivering services to carers (paid/unpaid) and/or to people affected by drug/alcohol use.
The work is funded by Oxfam and UWS. Notes will be taken during the discussion, but no personal information will be recorded. If you would like more information, contact april.shaw@uws.ac.uk or greig.inglis@uws.ac.uk.
Please register by 1 pm on Tuesday 28 July; however, if you require a translator, please let us know at least 2 weeks in advance.
Friday 31 July 2026 From 10 am to 12 noon In person only at the Falkirk and Clackmannanshire Carers Centre
Yvonne Cairns, NHS Forth Valley Dementia and Delirium Lead, and Emma Douglas, leader of the Community Mental Health Team for Older Adult Services, will be joining us again and are continuing to gather your views and experiences related to dementia services and support. The specific topic for this session will be confirmed later. During the session, Yvonne will also talk about how carers’ views and feedback shared in the last few sessions have shaped improvements in the accident and emergency department.
Please register by 1 pm on Tuesday 21 July; however, if you require a translator, please let us know at least 2 weeks in advance.
Thursday 23 July 2026 From 10 am to 12 noon In person at the Falkirk and Clackmannanshire Carers Centre or on Zoom
Daniel Stoddart, Care at Home and Review Lead at the Falkirk Health and Social Care Partnership (FHSCP), is seeking carers’ views about the redesign of Falkirk’s Care and Support at Home Service.
They’re moving Falkirk Council’s Care at Home Team towards a reablement-focused service. To do this, they want to expand the team and change the kind of support they provide.
Their proposal is for an expanded Falkirk Council team that does three things:
Short-term reablement-care: This will be their main focus. They will support people new to the service or those leaving hospital. They will provide temporary support to help people increase their independence. Following this, people would move to a different local care provider for any long-term support, unless they have complex care needs.
Short-term support: The Falkirk Council team will also provide short-term support to help prevent emergency care home placements and hospital admissions.
Care at home: The Falkirk Council team will provide care at home to people who need enhanced support or if their needs cannot be met by other providers. This means most people will receive their ongoing care at home support from other local providers.
If you currently receive care at home from the Falkirk Council team, these changes may affect how your care is provided.
Most care at home will be provided by another local provider. If you need to change provider, you can choose your own or ask Falkirk Council to arrange a provider for you.
All local providers are held to the same standards as Falkirk Council’s own services. If you pay for your care, the cost of care would not change. Falkirk Council’s Social Work Adult Services will still manage your care plan.
You can share your views by completing their survey until Monday 6 July, by clicking here.
Important Service update for carers in Clackmannanshire
We want to let carers in Clackmannanshire know about an upcoming change. From 1 July 2026. Adult Carer Support Plans and Young Carer Statements, along with ongoing statutory carer support, will transfer to Stirling Carers Centre
We will be writing to Clackmannanshire carers and asking if they would like their information passed over to Stirling Carers Centre. If you have any questions, please get in touch by emailing us at centre@centralcarers.co.uk or by phoning us on 01324 611510.