CARERS supported by Fair Havens Hospice held a summer barbecue as part of Carers Week.

The support workers who work with the charity, based in Westcliff, held the event on Saturday as part of the nationwide campaign to raise awareness of the work of carers the crucial contribution they make.

Among the carers who attended was Dawn Ivens, who has been attending one of the Fair Havens carer support groups following her husband Derek’s diagnosis with stage four bowel cancer.

She said: “Without the support from Fair Havens I know I would have become isolated and shied away from speaking about how I feel. I would have shut myself off completely and that really would not have helped either me or Derek.”