Do you support a family member, friend or neighbour? 

Here to Help is a support service to provide extra respite to those who support and care, giving some breathing space to do whatever they need to do. We provide free support through the service.

If you support or care for someone, you often do everything you can to minimise the need for formal care and support for the person you look after, but every now and then there comes a time when you need help or a break. When that happens, you need help NOW.

Presently no statutory funding for such support exists, but we want to change that: Here to Help is a support service that offers:

• Short term emergency care
• Respite
• Frequent breaks
• ‘Me time’ to give you some breathing space to carry on
• Peace of mind that a loved one is seeing a friendly face or getting local help

Who is a carer?

Any person of any age who provides unpaid support to friends or family members who can’t manage without help around due to:

• Long term illness
• Short term emergency
• Disability
• Mental health problems
• Addictions

How it works

The service is free and you can self-refer by completing our Referral Form or calling Carol on:

01431 821655

We’ll work with you there and then to decide what help you need and every effort will be made to get you that help within a couple of days.

The service and will cover the following area:

Data Protection

Read our Caring for the Carer Data Protection Policy on what information we hold, how we use it and your rights.

NHS Highland Carer Improvement Group

Under Section 27 of the Carers (Scotland) Act 2016 local authorities and relevant health boards have a duty to involve carers around carer’s services and are required to include consideration around:

• What needs might call for the provision of services
• What services might be provided to meet those needs
• How those services might be provided
• How the provision of those services might be evaluated

To ensure that the development of a carers’ programme and new carers’ services listen to the needs and wishes of carers and carer representatives, the NHS Highland Carers Improvement Group have identified the trialling of a number of pilot projects as a means to collecting evidence to tell us what carers need.

Caring for the Carer (now known as Here to Help) was one of the pilots and is entirely based on needs expressed by carers living in a remote, rural community to prevent them reaching crisis point and feeling they have nowhere to turn for help.