invitation to transitions overview session for parents and carers of children with ASN

Transitions Overview by FHSCP

Parents and unpaid carers of young people with additional support needs, this session is for you!

Join us if the child you care for is approaching or going through transitions.

Fiona Douglas, Transitions Coordinator for Falkirk Health and Social Care Partnership (HSCP), is coming to the Carers Centre to provide a Transitions Overview for parents and unpaid carers. Fiona supports primarily children with autism who struggle with changes, helping them come to terms with transitioning from primary school to high school, or from high school to work. She also helps parents and carers transition from children to adult services.

Join to:

✅ Learn about the transition process from children to adult services
✅ Understand available support and resources
✅ Ask questions and share experiences

Details:

📅 Tuesday 27 January
🕒 From 3 pm to 4 pm
📍 Carers Centre, 1A Bank Street, Falkirk, FK1 1NB
❗Book your place here!

Invitation to Dementia Consultation

Consultation: Dementia – Services and Support

We are inviting Falkirk carers who care for someone with a dementia diagnosis to this consultation.

We would encourage you to join even if you havenโ€™t attended the previous consultations, asย your valuable insights can help shape dementia support.

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 share top tips, and any progress that has been made to the services, thanks to carers having shared their experiences last time.

Please register by 2 pm on Tuesday 13 January; however,ย if you require a translator, please let us know at least 2 weeks in advance.

Details:
📅 Thursday 15 January 2025
⏰ From 10 am to 12 noon
📍 In person at the Falkirk and Clackmannanshire Carers Centre or on Zoom

December Care with Confidence Programme

Our new programme has now been released!

Come along to learn about topics that can help you with your caring role.ย 

Tuesday 25 November 2025: Dementia – It’s all in your approach


Find out how to avoid some of the arguments and upset when dealing with someone with dementia. Learn how someone with dementia may perceive his/her environment and how you can adapt your behaviour to increase communication and benefit your family memberโ€™s quality of life.

Wednesday 03 December 2025: Xmas Muscial Memories from 12 noon to 3 pmย 


More information to follow.


There will be no sessions for the rest of December. If you’d like to be informed about the new programme via email, please contact Donna. Otherwise, keep an eye on our latest news page in the coming weeks.ย 

To book a place or for further information on any of the above, please contact yourย Training Co-ordinator:

👩ย  Donna Mulder
📱ย  07824 381280
📧ย  donnamulder@centralcarers.co.uk

Information Sessions for Professionals

Falkirk Professionals, you’re invited!

Come along to network and learn about what we do and how you can help unpaid carers!

If you know any other professionals who work with carers, please let them know about this opportunity. This session will give professionals an overview of what we do at the Carers Centre and how we can work together to support the carers they work with.

✅ Learn how we support unpaid carers
✅ Hear from our teams
✅ Connect with other professionals
✅ Gain practical insights into the Carers (Scotland) Act 2016, Adult Carer Support Plans and Young Carer Statements, hospital discharge process involving the carer, and more!
Let’s work together to support carers in our community!

Meeting details:

📅 Thursday 27 November 2025
📅 From 2 pm to 4 pm
📍 At the Carers Centre in Falkirk or via Zoom

Register for the event by emailing Dayna: daynafaulds@centralcarers.co.uk

⁉️ ย Alternatively, if you can’t make this one and you’d like to be informed about upcoming sessions, please register your interest here.

invitation to falkirk carers voice

Invitation to November Falkirk Carers’ Voice

Falkirk Carers, you’re invited!

Come along to have your say!

During Novemberโ€™s Voice, we will have guest speakers related to Carers Rights Day. Kerry Storey from Scottish Families Affected by Drugs and Alcohol (SFAD) will join us, along with Falkirkโ€™s Mobile Emergency Care Service (MECS). Theyโ€™ll share information about the support they offer.

Meeting details:
📅 Monday 24 November 2025
📅 From 10 am to 12 noon
📍 At the Carers Centre in Falkirk or via Zoom

Register for the event here: https://form.jotform.com/CentralCarers/falkirk-carers-voice
Or get in touch with Sharlene Ramage, our Carer Participation Development Worker: sharleneramage@centralcarers.co.uk

⁉️ Did you know that you can read the previous meeting minutes on our website? Go to https://centralcarers.org/information/publications/

Carers Rights Day 2025

ย 🧡 Empowering Local Carersย 

We are inviting unpaid carers from the Falkirk District and Clackmannanshire to a special Carers Rights Day drop-in event, which aims to empower carers with knowledge, support, and connection.

📍 Location: 1A Bank Street, Falkirk, FK1 1NB
🕛 Time: Drop in between 10 am to 4 pm on Thursday 20 November 2025

This yearโ€™s national theme, โ€œKnow Your Rights, Use Your Rights,โ€ shines a spotlight on the importance of carers understanding their legal entitlements and accessing the support they deserve. With over 5.8 million unpaid carers in the UK – many of whom donโ€™t identify as carers – Carers Rights Day is about making sure no one is left behind.

What to Expect on the Day

The Centre will offer a welcoming space where carers can:

  • 💬 Speak directly with the Adult Carers Team and Short Breaks Team
  • 🧠 Test their knowledge at the Interactive โ€œTrue or Falseโ€ Rights Wall
  • 📝 Share views through questionnaires and postcards
  • 🎥 Tell their story at the Video Booth, with selected stories featured online (with consent)

The goal is for carers to leave feeling informed, valued, and connected. As Sharlene Ramage, our Carer Participation Development Worker, shared during Carers Week: โ€œMany carers are unaware of the support available to them, or what theyโ€™re entitled to. Thatโ€™s what weโ€™re here to help with.โ€

Real Stories, Real Impact

The Centreโ€™s work is rooted in the ensuring carers are recognised and supported. Local carers have shared powerful stories of how this support has changed their lives:

  • Fiona, 54, cares for her husband with early-onset dementia. A grant from the Time to Live Fund allowed them to take a short break together, improving their well-being and strengthening their bond.
  • John, who retired early due to health issues while caring for his wife, found renewed purpose through music. With help from the Carers Centre, he received a grant for music therapy sessions, combining his love of singing and guitar with much-needed respite.
  • Young carers have found a safe space at the Carers Centre to balance school and caring responsibilities. One said, โ€œItโ€™s the only place I feel like people understand what Iโ€™m going through.โ€
  • A carer who had never used a computer was supported to get online and now joins regular Zoom sessions. โ€œI didnโ€™t think I could do it, but now I feel connected and less alone.โ€

Why Carers Rights Day Matters

Carers Rights Day is about more than information – itโ€™s about empowerment. Whether youโ€™re caring for a child with additional needs, a sibling, an elderly relative, or even a neighbour, you have rights, including:

  • The right to request an Adult Carer Support Plan or Young Carer Statement
  • The right to access support services
  • The right to request flexible working arrangements
Join the Conversation!

No booking is required – just drop in! Whether youโ€™re new to caring or have years of experience, this is your chance to learn, connect, and be recognised.

 

Consultation: Dementia – Stress and Distress

We are inviting Falkirk carers who care for someone with a dementia diagnosis to this dementia consultation.

We would encourage you to join even if you havenโ€™t attended the previous consultations, asย your valuable insights can help shape dementia support.

Yvonne Cairns, NHS Forth Valley Dementia and Delirium Lead, andย 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. Thisย session will focus onย stress and distress,ย while Yvonne will also share updates and any progress that has been made to the services, thanks to carers having shared their experiences last time.

Please register by 2 pm on Monday 24 November;ย however,ย if you require a translator, please let us know at least 2 weeks in advance.

Details:
📅 Thursday, 27 November 2025
⏰ From 10 am to 12 noon
📍 In person at the Falkirk and Clackmannanshire Carers Centre

November Care with Confidence Programme

Our new programme has now been released!

Come along to learn about topics that can help you with your caring role.ย 

04 November 2025: Falls Prevention


Are you worried that you or the person you care for might fall?
Falls can result in injury and adverse longer-term consequences. Come along to hear how environmental assessments, medication reviews, therapy and use of equipment, can prevent falls at home

11 November 2025: Digital Switchover


Landlines are changing and the UKโ€™s telephone network is going digital. By January 2027, the old analogue network will be completely switched off and replaced by new digital landlines which will work using broadband. Come along to find out how this could affect you and any telecare devices you may use, such as personal alarms, pendant alarms, and home care monitoring systems.

25 November 2025: Dementia – It’s all in your approach


Find out how to avoid some of the arguments and upset when dealing with someone with dementia. Learn how someone with dementia may perceive his/her environment and how you can adapt your behaviour to increase communication and benefit your family memberโ€™s quality of life.

To book a place or for further information on any of the above, please contact yourย Training Co-ordinator:

👩ย  Donna Mulder
📱ย  07824 381280
📧ย  donnamulder@centralcarers.co.uk

Consultation by Age Scotland

Falkirk unpaid carers receiving state pension are invited to have your say!

Beth Allen, Policy Officer at Age Scotland, will be seeking your views about the issue that carers are unable to claim Carer Support Payment (formerly known as Carers Allowance) whilst in receipt of state pension.

Earlier this year, some of you kindly completed some questionnaires regarding this topic. The results have prompted Beth to come to the centre to have a more in-depth conversation with some carers in person because she feels your insights will be invaluable. You are welcome to attend regardless of whether youโ€™ve completed any of the previous questionnaires.

Beth, whose role involves monitoring, analysing and influencing developments in policy which impact people affected by dementia, plans to raise your views and add them to โ€˜The Big Surveyโ€™ carried out by Age Scotland to help achieve meaningful change for Scotlandโ€™s carers.

Please register by 2 pm on Wednesday, 5 November;ย however,ย if you require a translator, please let us know at least 2 weeks in advance.
Details:
📅 Monday, 10 November 2025
⏰ From 10 am to 12 noon
📍 In person at the Falkirk and Clackmannanshire Carers Centre