Carers of East Lothian Carers Centre

21/08/2026

This evening at Fisherrow. Peer support group for parents of children and young people with additional support needs. More details in their post below.

Connections Musselburgh will meet this Friday the 21st at Fisherrow Centre at 6pm. If you want to come along but are apprehensive please give us a message via the page and one of us will meet you before hand. Tea/coffee/juice supplied.

18/08/2026

Join us on Friday and help shape our response to the UK Government's consultation on potential changes to employment rights for unpaid carers, and for parents of seriously ill children including:

- giving carers more unpaid time off work
- letting carers take a longer break from work and still have their job to come back to
- introducing paid time off for carers
- a new type of leave and pay for parents of seriously ill children, called Hugh’s Law

This is a real chance to help shape what support carers can get from employers in the future, and we'd love to hear your views.

Our session is from 10am until 11.30am.

To read more and to book your free place for the session, just click the link: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/consultation-event-work-and-caring-tickets-1998217529421

[Image description: the text reads: 'have your say on employment rights and caring. Friday twenty first of August, online via zoom']

18/08/2026

Did you catch our Summer newsletter last week? If not, please follow the link below to read it.

If you are not signed up to receive our newsletter, you can do so following this link:
https://www.coel.org.uk/contact-us/online-referral-form/

Welcome to the Summer edition of the Carers of East Lothian Newsletter. Our newsletter is for unpaid carers and is issued three times a year. We hope that the newsletter keeps you up to date with relevant and important information for unpaid carers as well as keeping you in the loop about what we ar...

17/08/2026

Have Your Say About Cancer Care and Support

Have you been affected by cancer, either as a patient, family member, friend or carer?

The Macmillan Cancer Transformation Programme are looking to hear about people's experiences of cancer care and support in East Lothian. Whether your experience has been positive, challenging, or somewhere in between, they would love to hear from you.

They are asking people to get in touch if they are currently receiving cancer treatment, or if they were diagnosed with cancer within the last five years and treatment has finished.

They also want to hear from carers, family members and friends who are supporting, or have supported, someone diagnosed with cancer within the last five years.

They are running a drop in session at East Lothian Community Hospital. Details below:

📅 Monday 1 September
⏰ Drop in anytime between 11am and 2pm
📍 Community Hall, East Lothian Community Hospital Alderston Road Haddington EH41 3PF

You can:

✅ Have an informal chat about your experiences
✅ Share feedback and ideas for improvement
✅ Book a longer conversation for another day
✅ Pick up information and support resources
✅ Take away a link to complete their online survey

Tea, coffee and refreshments will be available.

No need to book. Just drop in and say hello.

Everyone affected by cancer is welcome, including carers, family members and friends.

14/08/2026

Very useful session running through Coalition of Carers In Scotland on 2nd September about financial support for unpaid carers in Scotland.

If you're an unpaid carer in Scotland, do you know what financial support you're entitled to?

Join us in September for an online session where the Scottish Government's benefits team and Social Security Scotland representatives will be sharing information on:

- the carer support payment (CSP)
- Scottish carer's supplement (SCS)
- carer's additional person payment (CAPP)
- the young carer grant (YCG)

We'll also be discussing barriers to financial support for older carers.

The session is designed to help you understand:

- recent changes to carer payments
- eligibility criteria
- what these changes mean for carers
- how carer payments interact with other payments like universal credit

The session will include time for questions which we're asking you to submit in advance. Sign up on the link below and submit your question here:

www.eventbrite.com/e/what-to-expectcarer-benefits-for-unpaid-carers-in-scotland-tickets-1997779690834

[Image description: the text reads: 'financial support for unpaid carers in Scotland. Join us online. Second of September']

14/08/2026

Thank you so much to a couple of attendees at the recent posy making session for carers with Amisfield Walled Garden, East Lothian for sharing this lovely photo of their experience.

They said " We found the workshop excellent as we learnt new skills and it also gave us the chance to forget about caring for a few hours and found it therapeutic. It was great to be learning in such a beautiful setting in the gardens. We chatted and shared some information with the other people in the group. Highly recommended!"

We are looking forward to apple pressing and lasagne bulb planting for carers at the garden later in the year.

14/08/2026

Are you impacted by someone else's addiction? East Lothian Family Support get together every second Tuesday at East Lothian Community Hospital from 5:45 - 7:45pm. An opportunity for a cuppa and a confidential chat. If you would like to know more about this, please contact them on 07367633553.

13/08/2026

Do you know that you can apply for a carer ID card in East Lothian?

To find out more and to apply for your card today, click on the link below.

There is no cost to the card. You will need to complete a short form and submit a photograph to apply.

Click below to read more about the scheme on our website where you will find a link to apply for your card today!

An ID card scheme for unpaid carers has been launched in East Lothian in 2026. Carers have told Carers of East Lothian and the Health and Social Care Partnership that a carer ID card is important for three reasons: *Please note, offers and discounts will be developed over time. If you are aware of a...

12/08/2026

Short free course being delivered in the centre by Budding Engineers. Organisers describe the course as particularly suited to anyone that is neurodiverse or who has barriers to education aged 16+.

**Please share**
Spaces are still available in this short free course being delivered in the centre by Budding Engineers. This course is particularly suited to anyone that is neurodiverse or has other barriers to education. Ping me an email to find out more - [email protected]

12/08/2026

Our very own Parent Carer Support Worker, Suzie Q, is taking on the Dundee Kiltwalk this weekend, and we'd like to wish her a huge amount of luck with the challenge!

We hope you'll join us in cheering her on every step of the way. 👏

You can read more about Suzie's Kiltwalk journey and follow her progress by visiting her JustGiving page via the link below.

We also have some walkers for the Edinburgh Kiltwalk on 13th September. If Suzie has inspired you to walk for Carers of East Lothian, please get in touch with Catherine on [email protected]

Help Suzie Q Rocking and Walking raise money to support Carers Of East Lothian