Carers and families

Our vision, as outlined in our Carers strategy 2024-2027 [pdf] 7MB, is to ensure that carers are at the heart of everything we do.

We recognise the invaluable contribution and the essential role that carers, including those under the age of 18 and those working within our organisation, take on supporting people with mental health challenges, learning disabilities and diverse neurological needs. We will work collaboratively with carers and families, recognising them as experts and equal partners in care as much as possible.

Our commitment to carers

We will identify carers

This means we will:

  • Ask people who use our services if they have a carer(s)
  • Support our staff to recognise your role from the start
  • Ask people who use our services if they are a carer.

We will recognise carers

This means we will:

  • Use a whole-family approach to supporting carers, recognising the needs of young carers
  • Listen to and respect you
  • Acknowledge your expertise and ask for your input
  • Embrace diversity and value differences through inclusion of all.
  • We will inform and involve carers

This means we will:

  • Work with you on the best way to keep you informed
  • Explain why, if for legal reasons, we cannot keep you informed or involved in the care of the person you support. We will still support you by listening to you and sharing general information.
  • Respect your confidentiality
  • With consent, involve you in the care and treatment pathway of the person you care for
  • Offer you opportunities to be involved in the delivery of our services
  • Ask you for your feedback.

We will guide and support carers

This means we will:

  • Provide you with clear and timely information
  • Recognise your wellbeing needs
  • Connect you to local support services.

Support for carers

If you care for someone in Devon (excluding Torbay), Devon Carers provides an information and support service run by six organisations working together to improve services for carers. Visit the Devon Carers website or call 03456 434 435.

For carers in Torbay, Torbay Carers Service offers a wide range of resources, including newsletters, videos, carers centres and courses. Visit the Torbay Carers website or call 01803 666620.

If you support someone with a learning disability, you may find these organisations useful:

Additional resources for carers:

Our priorities

Triangle of Care logoTo help us achieve our vision, we follow the Triangle of Care model and have adopted their standards as our six key priority areas:

  1. Carers and the essential role they play are identified at first contact or as soon as possible afterwards
  2. Staff are 'carer aware' and trained in carer engagement strategies
  3. Policies and practice protocols about confidentiality and sharing information are in place
  4. Defined roles responsible for carers are in place
  5. A carer introduction to the service and staff is available, with relevant information provided
  6. A range of carer support services is available.

These priorities aim to ensure that carers receive the necessary support, opportunities to shape our services, and the recognition they deserve.

Working together

We are committed to working together with carers, families, the people who use our services and our staff in shaping our services. Our Together Programme provides a framework and guide on how to embed this commitment into everyday practice. 

The views and experiences of both people who use our services and carers are paramount in our efforts to deliver person-centred, safe care and continuous improvement. We use a number of methods including the Friends and Family Test, surveys and focus groups to seek feedback and gather information about people's experience to improve how we deliver our services.

Carers are also actively encouraged to be involved in transformational projects and initiatives across our organisation.

Carers and people with lived experience, collectively known as experts by experience, who are interested in involvement and co-production can join the Together Expert by Experience Network. Members of the network receive access to opportunities across the organisation, as well as induction, training and reflective practice. We strongly believe that experts by experience should be fairly compensated for their contributions to service development and improvement. 

For more information about how to get involved, please email the Together Team at dpt.together@nhs.net 

Your feedback as a carer is important to us

If you are a family member - parent, sibling, grandparent or other carer - supporting someone who uses services at Devon Partnership NHS Trust, you can share your feedback through our simple online form.