This October myself and a group of colleagues will be taking on a walking challenge to help raise money for the charity we work for, Caring Together. We aim to complete the Ullswater Way, a 21 mile hike, in under 12 hours. With my dodgy arthritic knees and hips and disasterous physical fitness this is going to be a massive challenge but I am determined and will push myself hard to go as far as I possibly can. The reason? Both for a personal sense of satisfaction and achievement and because in these financially difficult times every penny we can raise will make a massive difference to those who dedicate themselves to looking after family and friends. 

Every year 4.3 million people become unpaid carers and our charity supports those in Cambridgeshire, Peterborough and Norfolk. We run commissioned services which help meet statutory and some emergency needs, but we also spend a lot of time talking to carers and asking what it is they really want and/or need and fundraising helps us to offer those more bespoke services. 

Unpaid caring can be incredibly rewarding but equally mentally and physically draining and carers often neglect their own needs until they hit a crisis point. We work hard to reach them before that happens but regardless of when they come to us in their caring journey we have a brilliant range of services that offer real, practical help and support.

We have an amazing team of advisors who offer information, support and guidance tailored to individual carers needs, carer hubs where carers can get together with each other for mutual support, understanding and sharing ideas or just a cuppa and a chat and hear from guest speakers, trips and activities for both adult and young carers so they can have a well deserved break, counselling services for bereaved carers or those in crisis, teaching sessions to equip carers with the skills and knowlege they need, quality home care in emergencies or so carers can attend to their own health needs and a quarterly magazine.

I'm so proud of the work we do, it really makes a difference and any donation you can give, big or small, will be greatly appreciated. 

Thanks for reading and please feel free to share far and wide in case any of your friends may feel like donating!