Supporting Unpaid Carers in Scotland: Insights from Our Dementia Team

Since April 2024, when Age Scotland was awarded funding from the National Lottery Community Fund, our Dementia Training Team has been actively conducting unpaid carer engagement sessions throughout Scotland.

This funding of £108,168 will enable us to support carers of people living with dementia and others with unpaid caring responsibilities by providing access to essential information and advice.

To continue to develop workshops supporting unpaid carers, the first stage of this new funding has focused on engaging directly with unpaid carers and carer groups. Our team has travelled across the country, working with various carer-friendly groups and communities. These informal sessions are designed to listen to unpaid carers, allowing them to share their views on carer education and identify gaps in support.

During one of these sessions, we spoke to members of the Dunbar Dementia Carers Support Group to understand their perspectives on carer support and training needs.

Christine Primrose, Unpaid Carer:

“Initially, I was bombarded with a lot of information and then, in a sense, forgotten about. As things get worse, it feels like the support lessens. Often carers can’t get to training because they have no respite to support the person living with dementia while they are away. Practical information and support are needed!”

Allen McCabe, Former Unpaid Carer:

“I’ve been volunteering with the group since my wife, who lived with dementia, passed away. I know how they feel; I’ve been there and try to be a friendly face. I think training needs to reflect real-life experiences of people who have been there—something you can relate to.

"We have lots of charities visiting us, including Age Scotland, which is great. We always take something away from it and get new information we didn’t have before. I would encourage organisations to go to groups to undertake training as much as possible, where we are already set up with support in place for the person living with dementia.

"When I first became an unpaid carer, I was given some leaflets at diagnosis, and that was it—no more support. It wasn’t until I joined this group that I got more support and found out about more opportunities. There will be people sitting here today who didn’t know about the training Age Scotland offered before now, and the more support and training they can get, the better!”

These engagement sessions are critical in shaping our training programs to meet the real needs of unpaid carers. By listening to their experiences and suggestions, we aim to provide more effective and practical training that addresses the challenges they face.

Thank you to everyone who has participated in these sessions so far. Your feedback is invaluable in helping us develop better resources and training for unpaid carers across Scotland. We look forward to continuing this important work and making a positive difference in the lives of carers and those they care for.

You can find out more about our training and workshops on our website.