THE Porch Surgery in Corsham held its annual carers' afternoon tea at Corsham Town Hall on Tuesday, March 5. The event was extremely well organised by Sue McGeever, carers' lead and record numbers attended this year's event.

Louise Hall from Wiltshire Farm Foods gave an interesting talk on the foods they provide and deliver locally; they generously provided delicious cakes to go with tea and coffee served by the Porch Patient Participation Group volunteers. The efforts of the volunteers were much appreciated.

Carer Support Wiltshire was represented by Jemma Pearson and Anne Baldie who are Community Connectors. They provided up-to-date information on the services available for carers.

Will from the Wiltshire Bobby Van Trust gave a really entertaining and informative talk on the home security service they provide. They also displayed home security devices including locks, alarms, external key safes and smoke detectors, which everyone was able to purchase. All of the money raised from the sales is injected back into the charity. They were also delighted with the nine referrals to carry out free home security that they received on the day.

A number of Porch Surgery staff also attended, including Sister Linda Callaghan, who provided an amusing and interactive session on ‘keeping our carers healthy’. Other members of staff were available to answer questions during a session at the end of the afternoon.

Babs and Hillary Light from Corsham Link came along to highlight the transport service they offer locally in taking patients to and from doctors' appointments and visits to hospitals.

John Johnson gave a brief but informative update on the Corsham foodbank.

The event was a huge success and positive feedback was received from the carers and they thanked the Porch staff for organising this lovely event.