On Tuesday 13 October 2026, I facilitated a carers’ poetry session at Ignition Brewery in Lewisham, supported by Imago. We explored our surroundings, shared thoughts about poetry, and used drawings to express feelings through words. What mattered to me was giving carers space to create and hear one another.
I began by sharing how writing became part of my own caring journey. As a former carer for my mother, who lived with schizophrenia, and an ongoing carer for my two non-verbal autistic brothers, I know how difficult it can be to explain what caring involves. Writing books helped me raise awareness, while poetry gave me another way to communicate experiences and emotions in a few lines.
I reminded everyone that no poetry experience was needed. Poems did not have to rhyme, and sharing was optional. I wanted this to be a carers’ peer support space, with poetry helping us connect.
Noticing the world around us
Our first exercise invited everyone to look around the brewery or step outside and notice what they could see, hear and feel. From those observations, they were encouraged to write six to twelve lines.
The rainy Tuesday morning provided plenty of inspiration. Poems captured umbrellas, passing traffic, autumn leaves and people going about their day. Others noticed the welcome inside the brewery, familiar faces, a cup of tea, and even the sound of the projector.
It was interesting to hear how differently people experienced the same surroundings. A busy street could suggest movement and energy, but also loneliness. The weather could feel dreary, while life continued around us.
As carers, we can spend so much time doing things and responding to other people’s needs. This exercise offered a moment to pause and notice where we were. When poems were shared, I asked the group what stood out. Listening and offering encouragement became part of the activity.
Here are two poems from our observation exercise, capturing the same morning through different eyes.
Serena’s poem about the Tuesday morning
Rushing, waiting, beeping, honking, Tuesday morning’s rush hour is well on the way. People walking, shopping, gazing, Umbrellas up on the go. The sky is grey, The rain drizzles upon the pavement, Yet the air is still warm, No shivering or quivering of lips in sight. The trees sway with the breeze, Autumn season turning the leaves, Yellow, brown and shades of grey.
Sybil’s poem about life continuing in the rain
The sky is dull and dreary and rain falling, But people still going about their business. Some people going to work and some are shopping. No matter the weather, life still goes on. The buses still run their schedules, The shops still open, tantalising everyone. Indoors, we go to the carers’ home, Writing poetry, everyone having a try. God knows what we will come up with, But it is good to exercise our brain. Everyone will have a laugh to the end of the day.
What does poetry mean to us?
We then discussed what a poem is and what it means to each of us. Some described self-expression, personal thoughts or a way to put unspoken feelings onto paper. Others were still discovering their relationship with poetry.
The conversation brought in childhood memories, Scottish ballads, Louise Bennett’s Jamaican poetry and the work of Benjamin Zephaniah. We explored how poetry can carry a serious message as well as entertain. Participants also reflected on writing as a way to find comfort or work through questions.
This mattered to me because carers bring their own histories, cultures and ways of expressing themselves. Making room for those differences helps everyone contribute.
Turning feelings into pictures and poems
For our next exercise, participants drew something representing how they felt, gave it a title, identified three details, and used those observations to write a short poem.
This was more challenging, so we took time to offer prompts and encouragement. Faith and Nadine also helped others take part. A simple shape, a colour or a few lines could provide a starting point.
The resulting work covered a wide range of subjects: light amid chaos, sunflowers, confusion, a mango tree, recycling, family time, love and the wish for a brighter life. People showed their pictures and read their words, with support available for those who felt shy.
Seeing these drawings alongside the poems added another dimension to the session. Each person had found something different to communicate.
These two pieces from the drawing exercise show how colour and images opened up reflections on faith, hope and happiness.
Light Amidst the Chaos
So I’m feeling lots of things at this moment. Matthew gave me these colours, The colours that you see in the picture. The picture made me wonder how vulnerable I want to be today. I wasn’t really sure. When I look at the picture, I feel as though life is a whirlwind. There’s always so much to do. But there’s a light peeping out in the corner. And I know that he is guiding me, Strengthening me and holding me. I know that I will be okay Despite the chaos of this season.
Be Yourself
I enter to find happiness. As the sunflower points upward to the sky, My heart soars upward in happiness. As I ponder on God’s masterpiece of creation, I see the brilliant yellow colours of the petals That reminds me of the sun shining, That brings happiness to everyone, Everyone, everyone around.
Poems reproduced from the session transcript, with light punctuation edits and line breaks.
Thank you to Imago and everyone who joined us
There was laughter, thoughtful conversation and plenty of encouragement throughout the morning. I asked participants to keep their work so they could return to it and reflect on what they had created.
Thank you to Imago for making space for a carer-led session at Ignition Brewery, and to everyone who took part. For me, the value of the morning was hearing carers express themselves and seeing the group support each other as they did so.
For World Mental Health Day 2026, I have created a short campaign video reflecting on this year’s theme: “Lived experiences heard: real voices, real change.”
As someone who cared for my mother, who lived with schizophrenia, this message means a great deal to me. People living with mental ill health deserve to shape the care they receive. Alongside them, unpaid carers also bring experiences and knowledge that services need to hear.
Caring can involve supporting someone through appointments, noticing changes in their wellbeing, or helping them settle at home after hospital. It can also mean uncertainty, sleepless nights and struggling to find someone who will listen.
Yet how often does someone ask the carer, “How are you coping?”
In my video, I highlight the importance of supporting carers’ own mental health and hearing from Black and minority ethnic carers, whose experiences of racism, stigma and exclusion need recognition and action.
I also discuss the Triangle of Care, which strengthens the partnership between the person receiving care, their carer and mental health professionals. That partnership must respect the person’s wishes, privacy and dignity while recognising the carer’s contribution and support needs.
World Mental Health Day brings global attention to these issues through the World Federation for Mental Health and the World Health Organization. Organisations including the Mental Health Foundation, Rethink Mental Illness, Carers UK and Carers Trust also provide valuable information, advocacy and support.
My message is simple: listening should lead to meaningful involvement and visible change.
If you are an unpaid mental health carer, your experience matters. You deserve care too.
Watch my short video and please share it to help unpaid carers feel seen and heard.
By Matthew McKenzie, Carer poet and author supporting caring communities
On Thursday 8 October 2026, I returned to Ealing Central Library to lead a poetry workshop for unpaid carers with Ealing Carers Partnership. We explored the library, wrote poems and experimented with performance, making time for conversation and laughter along the way.
As a carer myself, I know how easily our own interests can slip into the background. This session gave participants space to express themselves and hear one another, without needing previous poetry experience.
Supporting carers in Ealing
Ealing Carers Partnership supports adult unpaid carers living and caring in the borough. Its work includes wellbeing activities, Carers Cafés and access to respite support, helping carers find time for themselves and connect with others. Creative workshops form part of that wider effort to recognise carers as people with their own needs and aspirations.
Ealing Central Library provided a fitting setting. Located within Ealing Broadway Centre, it offers books, free computer and internet access, and rooms for community activities. For our workshop, the library also became a source of inspiration, with its shelves, reading spaces and everyday encounters offering starting points for poetry.
Finding poetry around us
Our first exercise invited participants to notice an object, book title or detail within the library and write around six lines about it. The poem could describe what they saw, explore a memory or imagine what the object might say.
The responses showed how differently we can experience the same space. One participant stayed in the workshop room and wrote about its surroundings and the group’s return. Another found inspiration among books on mathematics and science. A mother reading with a child prompted a poem about attention, calm and shared moments.
One particularly striking response connected the shape of the shelves with the twists and turns of a personal journey. An everyday detail became a way to express something much deeper.
We listened and offered reflections on what stood out. This mattered because sharing a new poem can feel exposing. Thoughtful encouragement helped make room for different voices and approaches.
Bringing words to life
Next, we experimented with performance. Participants wrote short poems and read them aloud before trying a change in pace, volume or emotion.
A poem could become a whisper. Another could gain strength through a more confident delivery. A poem about running took on a quicker rhythm, while laughter became part of another performance.
Listeners noticed how posture, looking up and changes in voice affected their experience of the words. There was applause and humour, alongside moments of recognition.
I wanted us to make use of being together in person. Hearing a voice change, watching someone respond and sharing spontaneous laughter gave the exercise an energy that belonged to the room.
Writing together
We also worked collaboratively, taking turns to contribute lines and read them aloud.
One piece explored the pressures of a difficult day and the search for breathing space. Another used the sound, smell and taste of coffee to create a vivid shared scene. These different approaches reminded us that poetry can hold everyday pleasures as well as frustration and exhaustion.
The conversations between participants were part of the session’s value. Finding a theme together meant listening, making suggestions and discovering how another person’s words could connect with your own.
Expression and connection for unpaid carers
Unpaid caring can leave little time for friendship or creative interests. Even when surrounded by responsibilities and appointments, a carer can feel that their own experiences remain unheard.
Art and poetry offer another way to express those experiences. A feeling can take shape through an image, a rhythm, a drawing or a few handwritten lines. Someone who struggles to explain their day directly might find that a poem gives them a starting point.
For me, tackling isolation also means creating opportunities for carers to contribute. During this workshop, participants became writers, performers and attentive listeners. Their observations shaped the session, and their words gave others something to respond to.
A poetry workshop cannot remove the practical pressures of caring. It can, however, provide a welcome pause and a chance to feel heard. Shared creativity can open a conversation that might otherwise never happen.
Thank you to Ealing Carers Partnership, Ealing Central Library and everyone who took part. The session reminded me how much can emerge when carers have time, encouragement and space to bring their own voices into the room.
Matthew McKenzie — Carers UK ambassador, author and poet
October is a time to celebrate Black history, culture and achievements, and to reflect on the people whose contributions have shaped Britain. As an unpaid carer and carer activist, I also see Black History Month as an opportunity to recognise the care taking place within our families and communities.
My new video, “Black History Month 2026: Honouring Our Communities and Unpaid Carers,” explores these connections, from celebrating Black British achievements to recognising carers whose work often receives little attention.
Recognising the care within our communities
Althouth History is shaped by more than famous names. It is also shaped by people who support relatives, neighbours and friends through illness, disability, mental health difficulties and older age.
Unpaid carers help hold families and communities together. They may organise appointments, provide emotional support, help with everyday tasks and speak up when someone struggles to be heard. Much of this happens quietly, alongside employment, family responsibilities and concerns about their own wellbeing.
Black History Month provides an opportunity to bring these experiences into the conversation. Celebrating our communities should include recognising the people who care within them.
Listening to Black carers
Black carers’ experiences are diverse. Culture, faith, language, family relationships and experiences of racism can affect how someone understands their caring role and how they encounters services.
Some people see themselves primarily as a son, daughter, partner or sibling rather than an unpaid carer. That can make it harder to recognise that support is available for them too.
Services need to listen carefully, avoid assumptions and understand what matters to each family. Recognising carers should lead to practical support and meaningful opportunities to influence the services they use.
Carers UK’s work has included research into the experiences of Black, Asian and minority ethnic carers through Making Carers Count, in partnership with Carers Trust. Its 2023 good practice briefing also explored how organisations can provide more culturally sensitive support.
Join the Carers UK Black History Month event
I will be joining Jacqui Darlington for a Carers UK Share and Learn online panel discussion:
Black History Month: Caring, volunteering and community Friday 23 October 2026 2–3pm UK time Online — aimed at unpaid carers
We will share our experiences of caring and volunteering, the challenges we have faced and what we have learned from our communities.
Jacqui is a carer for her son and a campaigner for unpaid carers and adults with additional needs. I will bring my own experiences of caring, community involvement and the issues explored in my book, Race, Caring and Mental Health.
Find the session “Black History Month: Caring, volunteering and community” on Friday 23 October 2026, then follow the booking instructions on the event listing.
Please book through Carers UK so you receive the joining information. Carer centres, hospitals and community organisations can also help by sharing the event details with unpaid carers.
Taking part beyond the event
There are many ways to take part in Black History Month: attend a local talk or exhibition, read Black authors, explore African and Caribbean heritage, or share family stories across generations.
For me, honouring our communities also means listening to unpaid carers and recognising their knowledge, relationships and contributions throughout the year.
What does honouring your community mean to you and how can we make unpaid carers more visible within that story?
By Matthew McKenzie, Cygnet PCREF Carer Lead and Carer Ambassador
On 1 October 2026, I attended Greater Manchester Mental Health NHS Foundation Trust’s Patient and Carer Race Equality Framework (PCREF) Community Event at St Thomas Centre in Manchester.
I attended in my role as Cygnet’s PCREF Carer Lead and Carer Ambassador, sharing Cygnet carer information alongside wider resources on the Triangle of Care and carer voices. I wanted to build relationships, learn from the discussions and keep the experiences of unpaid carers visible within conversations about racial inequality in mental health care, although at times i will support events as Triangle of Care ambassador.
The event followed my visit to Cygnet Lodge Salford the previous day, where I met staff and discussed carer involvement, PCREF and the support I could offer through lived experience and training. Together, these opportunities connected conversations within a service with the wider work of engaging communities.
I came away from the GMMH event recognising its importance, but also feeling that there is unfinished business. That reflection comes from my perspective as a lived experience carer lead: someone who wants PCREF to make a difference to families’ everyday experiences of mental health services.
Why I was there
My caring experience shapes how I approach these events. Having supported my mother, who lived with schizophrenia, I know that families can carry considerable knowledge, responsibility and worry while struggling to have their voices heard.
For carers from racialised communities, those experiences may also involve discrimination, assumptions about culture or faith, language barriers and mistrust shaped by previous encounters with services.
These are some of the reasons why I see the carer element of PCREF as essential. Families need opportunities to influence how services work, explain what has happened to them and help judge whether care is improving.
Representing Cygnet gave me an opportunity to bring that perspective into a wider discussion. It also allowed me to share resources, hear how another organisation is approaching PCREF and consider what learning could be brought back into our own work.
Making carer information visible
The Community Marketplace brought together organisations working across mental health, race equality, language support and community wellbeing.
My space was listed in the programme as “Triangle of Care and Carer Voices”. I shared Cygnet carer information alongside the wider carer resources I had brought. Carers Manchester North was positioned next to me, providing another visible connection to support for unpaid carers.
This mattered because a discussion about race equality in mental health needs to connect with the people supporting relatives and friends outside services. Information on a stall can provide an opening for those conversations, particularly for people who may not describe themselves as carers or know what support is available.
I also made a connection with Zaib from Carers Manchester North, who expressed interest in my work and the groups I facilitate. That is a relationship I hope to develop through sharing information about my carer forums and opportunities for engagement.
For me, building relationships is an ongoing part of the role. It involves following up, understanding what others do and finding useful ways to support each other.
A clear message about implementation
The opening contributions from Salli Midgley and Cllr Dr Jacqui Dyer MBE set out why this work matters.
One message that stayed with me was “the need to move beyond awareness and activity towards implementation and impact“. Events, training and plans have value, but the question remains: what difference are they making to people’s access to support, experiences of care and health outcomes?
That is a question carers can help answer.
A family may not know the name of a framework, but they know whether someone listened when they raised a concern. They know whether information was understandable, whether their relative’s cultural needs were considered and whether they felt involved in planning the next stage of care.
That is where PCREF needs to become visible.
Hearing about GMMH’s three-year plan
Honey Ogunleye, GMMH’s PCREF Lead, and Charles Kwaku-Odoi, Chief Executive of the Caribbean and African Health Network, discussed the community engagement that informed the Trust’s board-approved three-year PCREF plan.
I welcomed the emphasis on returning to communities and showing how their contributions had shaped priorities. Asking people to share difficult experiences creates a responsibility to explain what happens afterwards.
The presentation included priorities around reviewing interpretation and language support, monitoring waiting times, developing anti-racist practice standards and incorporating cultural identity into care and discharge planning.
It also described plans to strengthen community involvement in governance and develop measures of progress.
These are important areas. From a carer perspective, language support and culturally responsive communication can affect whether families understand what is happening and feel able to participate. Care and discharge planning are also points where families need clear information and opportunities to raise questions.
However, a published plan is a starting point. Its value will become clearer as commitments are delivered and people can describe what has changed.
Community challenge was a strength
The care-group showcases and Race Equity Unfiltered panel created opportunities to question local priorities and discuss what meaningful progress should look like.
There was challenge around bureaucracy, workforce diversity, the role of community organisations and whether further training alone would be enough to change practice.
Another concern was familiar to anyone who has contributed to consultation: people give feedback, but do they hear what happens because of it?
I appreciated that these questions were raised openly. Community engagement needs room for disagreement and scrutiny. People should be able to question an organisation’s approach without being treated as an obstacle to progress.
I also recognised the willingness of staff to acknowledge that more needed to be done. Honest discussion about gaps is useful when it leads to a clear response.
The next step is to connect that openness with action: what will change, who will take responsibility and how will communities hear about progress?
My experience of the day
Although community partners were present and contributed, I found parts of the day intensive. There was a great deal to listen to and consider, including care-group structures, governance arrangements, data systems and implementation priorities.
Those subjects matter, but at times the event felt closer to an NHS working session than a gathering shaped around the experiences of unpaid carers.
I say this as a reflection on how the day felt to me. I could see the effort behind the event and the importance of bringing staff and communities together. I also think it is worth asking how the format could make participation easier for someone attending while managing the pressures of caring.
Clear language, manageable activities and time to discuss everyday experiences can help people connect organisational plans with their own lives.
Where were carers’ voices?
Carers were included in the presentation, the marketplace and the purpose of the lived experience listening space. I want to recognise that.
However, I did not feel that unpaid carers’ own accounts had a sufficiently visible place in the main discussions, maybe that might come at another GMM PCREF event?
This distinction matters. Carer organisations can provide support and valuable insight, while carers themselves bring knowledge of what it feels like to support someone through crisis, admission, rehabilitation and discharge.
I would have welcomed more explicit discussion of how racial inequality affects that caring role. For example, what happens when a family’s concerns are dismissed? How do language barriers affect communication with carers? How are cultural or faith needs understood? What support is offered to a carer whose own wellbeing is suffering?
These questions need to be part of how progress is assessed.
The event’s lived experience listening space was a valuable part of the programme. My hope is that future work will build on it with a clearer and sustained place for unpaid carers, including those who are less confident speaking in a large room.
Data needs to connect with experience
The afternoon’s focus on data explained work to improve ethnicity recording and develop a PCREF dashboard.
I understood why this matters. Missing or inaccurate information makes it harder to identify inequalities and assess whether services are improving. The co-produced video, BSL provision and easy-read material also showed attention to making information more accessible.
From my perspective, the next question is how that information connects with lived experience.
Recording someone’s ethnicity more consistently is useful, but it does not by itself tell us whether they felt respected or whether their family was listened to. Measures of access and outcomes need to sit alongside people’s accounts of care.
For carers, I would want that learning to include communication, involvement in decisions, responses to concerns and support during discharge. We need to understand what the figures mean in people’s lives.
Community influence must continue after the event
The presentation described an opportunity for community involvement in a PCREF Oversight and Delivery Group. It also asked practical questions about representation, influence, escalation, accessibility and reporting back.
I was pleased to see payment and adjustments included in those questions. Meaningful participation depends on whether people can realistically take part.
Carers may need flexible meeting times, remote access or support with replacement care. They may also need time to understand papers and confidence that speaking honestly will lead to a respectful response.
For me, community involvement needs a clear route into decisions. People should know how their recommendations are considered, how they can raise concerns when progress stalls and how the organisation will explain its response.
I expect NHS organisations to engage with the communities they serve. That engagement needs to continue between events, particularly with people whose trust has been damaged or whose voices are often overlooked.
What I will take back into my Cygnet work
The event gave me useful points to reflect on in my role as Cygnet’s PCREF Carer Lead and Carer Ambassador.
The first is the importance of keeping carer information visible alongside wider race equality work. The stall helped me do that, but information also needs to lead to opportunities for conversation and involvement.
The second is to make the link between PCREF and everyday caring experiences clearer. Through my site visits, masterclasses and discussions with staff, I can continue asking how families experience communication, cultural understanding and involvement in care.
The third is to keep building relationships with carer organisations and community partners. Those connections can help us hear perspectives beyond our own services and learn where support is needed.
Finally, I want to keep asking what happens after feedback is received. Carers need to know that their time and experiences have contributed to something tangible.
These are questions I bring to Cygnet as well as to NHS services. My role gives me a responsibility to listen, share learning and offer constructive challenge.
Important work, with unfinished business
I am glad I attended the GMMH PCREF Community Event. It brought people together, made space for challenge and showed work being developed around race equality, community relationships and accountability.
I also left with questions about how unpaid carers can become more visible and influential within that work.
Calling this unfinished business reflects the purpose of PCREF. It asks organisations to examine inequalities, listen to people and keep improving. A successful event can open conversations; sustained work afterwards is what will give those conversations meaning.
Thank you to the organisers, community partners and everyone who contributed. I hope the next stage brings clearer feedback, visible progress and more opportunities for unpaid carers to shape what happens.
As a lived experience carer lead, I want families to be able to recognise the difference in their own encounters with services and to have a voice when that difference has yet to reach them.
September is widely recognised as Suicide Prevention Awareness Month, with World Suicide Prevention Day taking place on 10 September.
Organised internationally by the International Association for Suicide Prevention and supported by the World Health Organization, the 2026 theme is “Changing the Narrative on Suicide,” with the call to action “Start the Conversation.”
Organisations such as Samaritans, PAPYRUS, Mind, Rethink Mental Illness and members of the National Suicide Prevention Alliance also work to raise awareness, challenge stigma and improve suicide prevention across the UK.
For this year’s campaign, I have produced a new awareness vlog focusing not only on people experiencing suicidal thoughts, but also on the unpaid mental health carers supporting them.
Relatives, partners and friends may spend long periods watching for warning signs, attending appointments and responding to crises. They can carry an enormous level of fear and responsibility, yet their own emotional needs are frequently overlooked.
Carers should never be expected to manage suicide risk alone. Professionals must listen to their concerns, involve them appropriately and ensure they can access support themselves.
In my new vlog, I discuss how we can challenge stigma, start compassionate conversations, listen without judgement and remember to check in with the person providing care as well as the person in crisis.
If you or someone you know needs urgent mental health support in England, call NHS 111 and select the mental health option. Samaritans can be contacted free, day or night, on 116 123. If someone is in immediate danger, call 999 or go to A&E.
Together, we can move from silence to conversation, from stigma to compassion, and from carers coping alone to communities sharing responsibility.
By Matthew McKenzie – Cygnet PCREF Carer Lead & Carer Ambassador
Cygnet PCREF Carer Lead & Carer Ambassador
On 4 August 2026, unpaid carers, professionals and people with lived experience came together at Cygnet Churchill for the second Voices & Verses Carers Poetry Event. The purpose of the afternoon was not simply to read poetry, but to create a safe space where carers could express experiences that are often overlooked within mental health services.
The event formed part of Cygnet’s ongoing commitment to the Patient and Carer Race Equality Framework (PCREF) by exploring how creativity, culture and storytelling can strengthen co-production and improve relationships between carers and services.
May is Mental Health Awareness Month 2026 over in the states, with this year’s theme, “More Good Days, Together”, encouraging communities to support mental well-being.
Unpaid carers and family caregivers often face unique challenges, and organizations like Mental Health America, National Alliance for Caregiving, Family Caregiver Alliance, AARP, and the American Association of Caregiving Youth provide valuable resources and guidance.
This month is a reminder that small acts of support and self-care can make a big difference in creating more good days for everyone.
Today is Young Carers Action Day, a time to recognise the incredible strength and resilience of young people who care for others.
As someone who cared for my brother who has autism while growing up, I understand how caring can shape a young person’s life. It can build compassion and responsibility, but it can also bring challenges that many people don’t see especially when it comes to balancing school, friendships, and your own mental wellbeing.
To see my video promoting Young Carers Action day 2026, please view below.
This year’s theme, Fair Futures for Young Carers, is an important reminder that young carers deserve the same opportunities as everyone else to learn, to thrive, and to look after their own wellbeing too.
Young carers should never feel invisible. They deserve recognition, understanding, and the right support in their schools, communities, and workplaces.
Today as of this blog and video, I encourage everyone to take a moment to learn about young carers, listen to their stories, and help create a future where every young carer feels seen, supported, and valued.
Young carers across the UK continue to receive growing recognition and support from organisations, communities and government. For example, Carers Trust leads Young Carers Action Day, encouraging schools, employers and communities to ensure young carers have fair opportunities. Local authorities such as Royal Borough of Greenwich have also highlighted their commitment to supporting young carers through local services and awareness campaigns. Media outlets like BBC Newsround have helped raise awareness among young audiences by sharing stories about the experiences of young carers. In addition, initiatives such as Going Forward into Employment (GFIE) highlight wider efforts to create opportunities for carers and under-represented groups.
It is also important that support reaches ethnic minority carers, who can sometimes face additional barriers such as cultural stigma, language barriers, or limited access to services. Organisations such as Carers UK and community groups working with Black, Asian and minority ethnic carers continue to call for more inclusive and culturally sensitive support.
On 25th February 2026, I had the privilege of speaking at the Carers’ Forum hosted by Involve Kent.
Involve is a voluntary sector infrastructure organisation in Kent that supports unpaid carers by providing information, advice and practical help to make caring more manageable.
They organise regular carers’ forums and events where carers can meet each other, access specialist support services, hear from guest speakers on issues like benefits, legal rights and wellbeing, and contribute their lived experience to local planning and decision-making. Involve also connects carers with tailored resources, signposts to relevant services across health, social care and community sectors, and advocates for carers’ voices to be heard by policymakers and service providers
The forum ran from 10:30am to 1:30pm and brought together unpaid carers from across Kent to connect, learn and have their voices heard.
It was my second time speaking at this forum, and once again I was struck by something powerful: the room was full. That might sound simple, but in the world of unpaid caring which can often feel isolating and invisible a full room means solidarity. It means people are choosing, despite exhaustion and competing demands, to show up for themselves and each other.
Arriving and the atmosphere
From the moment I walked in, there was a real sense of warmth. Information stands lined the hall Involve, Citizens Advice, mental health services, energy advice, leisure services and more. Tables were covered in leaflets, conversations were already flowing, and carers were reconnecting with familiar faces.
The purpose of the forum was clear:
To enable those caring unpaid for an adult family member, partner or friend to meet, gain information about services in their community and have their voices heard .
That last part to have their voices heard is what resonated most with me.
It was also good to see Carer leads from Cygnet Maidstone engaging with carers in the community of Kent.
My talk: Caring for someone with a mental health diagnosis
I spoke about caring for someone with a mental health diagnosis and the Patient and Carer Race Equality Framework .
As many know, I cared for my mother who lived with schizophrenia, and I now support a close friend who lives with personality disorder and addiction challenges. I don’t speak as a clinician. I spoke as someone who has sat in GP waiting rooms, on inpatient wards, in crisis meetings, and at home during those “screaming silences” that carers know too well.
I shared:
The confusion I felt when I didn’t even realise I was a “carer”
The frustration of confidentiality barriers
The loneliness of not being listened to
The emotional exhaustion that comes from constantly firefighting crises
I then shared a poem to promote carers rights
But I also shared something equally important: growth, advocacy and solidarity.
I encouraged carers to:
Educate themselves about the condition they are supporting
Learn the difference between symptoms and personality
Understand triggers
Forgive themselves for mistakes
And most importantly, look after their own wellbeing
One message I always return to was – You cannot pour from an empty cup.
I also spoke about The Patient Carer Race Equality Framework
It exists because there is clear evidence of:
Disproportionate detentions under the Mental Health Act
Poorer outcomes for Black and minority ethnic patients
Higher levels of distrust between communities and services
Carers feeling unheard or excluded
I spoke about how minority carers can face:
Cultural misunderstandings
Language barriers
Stigma around mental health within communities
Fear of services due to past discrimination
A lack of culturally appropriate support
Discussion tables: Carers influencing change
After my talk, Clara from Involve led discussions feeding into Kent’s Health Needs Assessment for carers. Carers were asked:
How do you recognise when it’s time to ask for help?
What causes burnout?
What would a carer-friendly community look like?
These wete not token questions. Staff took notes (without identifying details) so carers’ lived experiences could directly inform local planning .
I moved around the room speaking with carers. Some were open and vocal. Others were quieter, but their listening was just as powerful. Not everyone wants to speak publicly and that’s okay. Being present is also participation too.
Power of Attorney – protecting your voice
Later in the morning, Glen Miles spoke about the Mental Capacity Act and Lasting Power of Attorney .
As carers, we often assume we will automatically be consulted in crises. The reality is different. Without legal authority, our ability to advocate can be limited.
One key takeaway:
Don’t delay in arranging Lasting Powers of Attorney.
If you want your voice – or your loved one’s voice – to be heard, formalise it.
For carers who have experienced being excluded from decisions, this was a particularly important session.
Citizens Advice & practical support
Ian from Citizens Advice spoke before lunch about benefits, debt, housing and confidential support .
With the cost of living crisis, carers are under immense financial pressure. Many reduce employment hours or leave work entirely. The session was a reminder that:
Advice is free
It is confidential
You can attend anonymously
You are not judged
Lunch followed – catered by Fusion – and honestly, some of the most meaningful conversations happen over sandwiches. Carers swapping stories. Sharing phone numbers. Recommending services. That peer-to-peer support is priceless.
What stayed with me
What stayed with me most wasn’t just the agenda or the presentations.
It was:
The older carer quietly nodding as I spoke about emotional exhaustion.
The new carer asking, “Is it normal to feel this angry sometimes?”
The male carers who stayed behind to speak to me privately.
The carers from minority backgrounds who spoke about cultural barriers and stigma.
These forums matter because carers matter.
Unpaid carers save the system billions. But beyond economics, we hold families together. We absorb crises. We advocate in rooms where we’re not always welcomed.
