A NEW campaign is aiming to find out what local people think about the provision of adult home care in Pembrokeshire.

‘Time to Care Pembrokeshire’ wants to hear from people who are currently receiving - or have previously received - care at home, have a relative or friend who receives care, and those who are looking for more information about local services.

A question and answer session will be held at the Torch Theatre, Milford Haven, on Thursday, May 1, where a panel of experts will join Cllr Paul Miller, leader of Pembrokeshire County Council’s Labour group, for a discussion to ‘help shape the future’ of care for older people in Pembrokeshire.

Cllr Miller said the aim of the event was to find out what people really think about home care, and how it can be improved.

“Every week people in Pembrokeshire receive 15,000 hours of help at home and with significant changes on the horizon it’s never been more important for people to get involved in the debate,” said Cllr Miller.

“We want to hear from as many people as possible,” he added. “Come to the meeting and tell us what needs to happen.”

Joining Cllr Miller will be Dr Lydia Hayes, of Cardiff University, Heather Wakefield, UNISON National Secretary, Local Government, and representatives from local care organisations.

Panel members will each outline their vision for the future of care in Pembrokeshire, before opening the floor up to questions and viewpoints from the audience.

The feedback from this and other follow-up events will then be used to produce a ‘care charter’, which will be used by the Labour group as a basis for its future decisions on adult care in Pembrokeshire.

“This is about local people taking the lead. It is about time the Pembrokeshire people were the ones who determined the services they wanted and this is their opportunity,” said Cllr Miller.

Vic Dennis, UNISON Pembrokeshire branch secretary, said it was important to ensure the relationship between homecare workers and those receiving care was a sustainable one.

“UNISON has always worked hard to campaign for strong and robust homecare services, and this can only be delivered by a skilled and dedicated workforce. It is essential the homecare workers are treated fairly by their employer and paid decently for the important work that they do,” he said.

The event starts at 1.30pm. Questions can be submitted until 2pm, when the main event begins.