A free online service in Nottingham is helping people to stay in their homes for longer, improve health and wellbeing, and reduce isolation.
Rally Round allows a network to be created around a person with care needs. Anything that the person needs help with can be listed as a task and trusted friends, family members, neighbours or staff involved in their care can see this, discuss it, agree to take it on and let everyone know when it has been done.
Rally Round helps share the load – jobs can be anything from doing the shopping, helping someone getting out and about, changing a lightbulb, keeping appointments or tidying the garden.
It is a simple idea. A co-ordinator, who is usually the main carer for the person being rallied around, invites family, friends and volunteers into a private support network where jobs are listed. Everyone in a support network can see what jobs are waiting for volunteers, what jobs they and others have already offered to do, and jobs that have been completed.
An estimated 1.5 million older people with care needs in the UK rely on family and friends for help. Rally Round is designed to make it easier for them to provide this care.
Councillor Alex Norris, Portfolio Holder for Adults and Health, said: ”Rally Round is an exciting service which has been designed to support people to maintain independence and improve their health. It can really help to build social networks to prevent people becoming isolated or lonely.
“The online system is easy to use and can be securely accessed at any time to make life easier and safer. The service can have a huge benefit to the lives of our older citizens and their friends, families and carers. So I would urge people to try it out.”
Rally Round is provided free of charge through the support of Nottingham City Council. So city residents or anyone who cares for someone who is a resident of Nottingham can create a support network using a Rally Round account. Once a support network has been started, any trusted people can be invited to join, regardless of where they live.
It works on desktops, laptops, tablets and mobile phones, and a daily or weekly email provides a useful reminder of what has been agreed to do.
How it works:
Visit the website www.rallyroundme.com/nottingham
- Create an account for someone who needs help
- Invite trusted friends and family to help
- Add the tasks which need doing
- Your trusted helpers complete the tasks.
To find out more about Rally Round, watch this short video – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TaLcq082Pcc