Adroddiad o weithdai staff yng Nghyngor Sir Ddinbych

Mae gofalu, yn ddi-dâl, am aelodau o’r teulu neu ffrindiau – nifer ohonynt yn byw â dementia – yn effeithio ar fwy o deuluoedd ar draws y DU, gan gynnwys y gofalwyr hynny sy’n ceisio cael cydbwysedd rhwng eu gwaith fel cyflogeion â’u cyfrifoldebau gofalu.

Yn ôl Cyfrifiad 2011, mae oddeutu 3 miliwn o bobl – allan o boblogaeth oedran gweithio o tua 4.3 miliwn – yn gwneud gwaith taladwy tra’n gofalu’n ddi-dâl am rywun hŷn, anabl neu wael. Mae edrych ar ôl rhywun â dementia yn fwy cymhleth fyth. Gofalwyr di-dâl yw’r gweithlu mwyaf mewn gofal dementia, yn darparu 44% o gyfanswm cost gofal. Maen nhw’n arbed o leiaf £11.6bn y flwyddyn (ffigyrau’r DU) i’r pwrs cyhoeddus. Yn ‘Dementia and the Workplace’, adroddodd Age Scotland fod 93% o ofalwyr sy’n gweithio ac yn edrych ar ôl person â dementia ar draws y DU, yn dweud bod hynny’n effeithio ar eu gallu i weithio. Yn ôl Ymchwil Alzheimer y DU, nid yw 15% o ofalwyr pobl â dementia mewn gwaith o ganlyniad i’w profiad o ofalu. Ceir effaith anghymesur ar ofalwyr sy’n ferched – mae ymchwil Alzheimer UK yn adrodd fod 60-70% o ofalwyr pobl â dementia yn fenywod, gydag 20% wedi mynd o waith llawn amser i waith rhan amser, ac mae 17% o’r rheiny sydd dal mewn gwaith yn dweud eu bod yn teimlo’u bod yn cael eu cosbi oherwydd eu rôl fel gofalwyr.

Mae’r newid yn ffurf y boblogaeth yn golygu y bydd llawer o bobl yn gweithio am hirach, tra’n gorfod cydbwyso gwaith a gofal, gyda llai o bobl ifanc i gefnogi’r niferoedd cynyddol o bobl hŷn. Mae yna felly nid yn unig reidrwydd moesol a chyfreithiol cryf ar gyflogwyr i gefnogi teuluoedd a ffrindiau sy’n rhoi gofal di-dâl, ond rheidrwydd economaidd cryf hefyd.

Mae Cyngor Sir Ddinbych wedi penderfynu fod gofalwyr yn flaenoriaeth gorfforaethol iddyn nhw. Mewn partneriaeth â tide – ‘gyda’n gilydd mewn dementia bob dydd’ - a NEWCIS, fe wahoddon nhw eu staff sy’n ofalwyr di-dâl i ddod i weithdai yn ystod Wythnos Gofalwyr i weld sut beth yw gweithio i’r cyngor fel gofalwyr a rhai o’r heriau y maen nhw’n eu hwynebu fel gweithwyr. Cafodd llawer o’r cyfranogwyr fod siarad am eu hanghenion eu hunain yn brofiad emosiynol, gan mai hwn oedd y cyfle cyntaf iddynt wneud hynny. Mae’r adroddiad byr hwn yn crynhoi eu cyfraniadau a’u syniadau am beth arall allai’r cyngor sir ei wneud i’w cefnogi yn y gwaith.

Report from staff workshops in Denbighshire County Council

Caring, unpaid, for family members or friends – many of whom may have dementia – is affecting more families across the UK, including those carers who are trying to juggle work as employees with their caring responsibilities.

According to the 2011 Census, around 3 million people – out of a working age population of about 4.3 million – do paid work whilst caring unpaid for an older, disabled or ill person. Caring for someone with dementia adds extra complexity. Unpaid carers are the biggest workforce in dementia care, providing 44% of the total cost of care. They save the public purse at least £11.6bn per year (UK figures). In ‘Dementia and the Workplace’ Age Scotland reported that, across the UK, 93% of working carers looking after a person with dementia say that it is affecting their capacity to work. According to Alzheimer’s Research UK, 15% of carers of people with dementia are not in work as a result of their caring experience. There is a disproportionate negative impact on female carers – Alzheimer’s Research UK report that 60-70% of carers of people with dementia are women, with 20% having gone from full time work to part time work, and 17% of those still in employment report feeling penalised because of their caring role.

The changing shape of the population means that many people will be working for longer, whilst having to juggle work and care, with fewer younger people to support the growing numbers of older people. There is therefore not only a strong moral and legal imperative on employers to support families and friends who provide unpaid care, but also a strong economic imperative too. The UK economy and the productivity of businesses and employers, including the public and voluntary sectors, depend on retaining their skilled and knowledgeable staff. This includes employees juggling work with caring.

Denbighshire County Council has determined that carers are a corporate priority for them. In partnership with tide and NEWCIS, they invited their staff who are unpaid carers to come to workshops during Carers Week to explore what it is like to work for the council as carers and some of the challenges they face as employees. Many participants found talking about their own needs to be an emotional experience, as this was the first opportunity they had to do so. This short report summarises their contributions and their ideas about what else the county council might do to support them in work.