Julie Morgan MS, Deputy Minister for Social Services
Today I am pleased to launch the Charter for Unpaid Carers, which sets out the rights of unpaid carers under the Social Services and Well-being (Wales) Act.
The charter has been co-produced with members of my Unpaid Carers Ministerial Advisory Group, representatives from local authorities, the NHS and the third sector. Unpaid carers have also played an active role in drafting this document and I would like to thank everyone who gave their time to take part in these important discussions.
Drawing on the expertise of professionals and unpaid carers, we have created a simple and practical guide to support carers to understand and access their rights. The charter is also intended to help professionals to gain a better understanding of what is expected of them under the Social Services and Well-being (Wales) Act 2014.
We have produced three versions of the charter. The full Charter provides an overview of carers’ rights and includes examples of good practice in supporting and engaging with unpaid carers in health and social care settings. The summary version highlights key legal rights and the young people’s version is presented in a way that can be easily understood by an unpaid carer of any age.
The overall design of the documents mirrors our successful awareness campaign to ensure there is a consistency across our published documents.
I hope this charter will be an effective tool for both unpaid carers and professionals and will raise awareness and improve support for unpaid carers of all ages.