Shetland Carers co-ordinate the Scheme locally, with support from Shared Care Scotland, who now support carer centres in 30 local authority areas to run Respitality Schemes.

Respitality (respite + hospitality) is a way the hospitality and leisure sector can help their local communities by recognising and appreciating the contribution of unpaid carers, by donating short breaks to carers at quieter times of the year. This enables a carer, plus a companion where possible, to have a break away from their caring responsibilities to recharge their batteries and have a little time for themselves.

Holistic Yoga Shetland kindly donated five personalised Himalayan sound therapy sessions (for either one or two people) during 2024. Here is some feedback from a carer who recently enjoyed one of these sessions:

"Thank you, thank you, thank you! It’s easy to forget to care for myself and this is exactly what I needed. Worthwhile and a safe space to explore all emotions. Highly recommend to anyone. Thank you for dedicating your time to a worthy project."

Carers can apply to the Respitality Scheme and they can be awarded a break, depending on which donated breaks are available at that time.

There are still some sound therapy sessions to be awarded and used by the end of March 2025, if any carer is interested to apply and is keen to have this as their Respitality break for 2025.

For more information, click HERE or email carers@shetland.org