11 May Isbourne Arts – Winchcombe Creative Carers

Bringing unpaid carers together for a welcome creative break

24th June – 5th August
12:45pm – 2:45pm
Isbourne Arts Centre, High Street, Winchcombe, Cheltenham GL54 5LJ

The pilot course of 7 sessions is designed to:

• Enable carers to take time for themselves
• Support social connection with others who share similar experiences
• Help build confidence through gaining new skills
• Ease frustration and help carers feel “heard”

Anyone aged 18+ in or around the town who provides regular, unpaid support to a loved one is invited to find some welcome distraction from daily challenges through having a go at a range of creative arts activities.

Each participant will also benefit from one-to-one chats with their Artist Faciltiator, Emma, who also has experience as an unpaid carer. She will support them to think about how they can stay creative, and stay well after the sessions have finished. Carers involved will also have access to resoruces, such as video tutorials and worksheets to help them stay creative at home.
New members are being invited to join this small, friendly and non-judgemental group and are encouraged to get in touch to discuss any worries about attending. The partners co-designing the offer are committed to working with participants to bring down barriers where possible. For example, there is a small budget to support reasonable transport costs and, if required, arts actviities can also be provided for those who are being cared for.

The group has been co-designed and is being piloted by partners:

• Artlift, a nationally-renowned charity that has been providing socially prescribed ‘Arts on Prescription’ services for almost 20 years
• Gloucestershire Carers Hub, who benefit unpaid carers throughout the county through information, supporting carers’ activities, Carers’ cafés, a buddy scheme and carers’ emergency scheme
• Isbourne Arts, a newly established performance, events and community hub serving the rural community in and around Winchcombe
• Cheltenham Peripheral Primary Care Network, a collaboration of five GP surgeries including Bishops Cleeve surgeries and Winchcombe Medical Practice

Participants can be referred by a health or voluntary sector professional, or they can put themselves forward just by filling in a simple form or calling Artlift.
If you’d like to find out more or to talk to Artlift about a potential referral, call 01 452 222726 or email artlift.referrals@nhs.net