FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS (F.A.Q.)
Q. What is carepack.ie?
A. carepack.ie is a completely voluntary organisation. It is a kindness initiative run by volunteers. carepack.ie liases with carehomes and nursing homes and finds out if any of their residents would like to receive a gift from a stranger for Christmas as a gesture of goodwill. We give out the resident address to a volunteer and they send them a carepack (i.e. gift) for Christmas and if it weighs under 1kg they can post it FREE with thanks to An Post.
carepack.ie is free for all service users, we do not accept donations, it is completely voluntary.
Q. How do I send a carepack?
A. Follow these how-to steps: HERE
Q. I did not receive my email / I have lost my email, can you resend?
A. Retrieving lost emails is not an easy process and so we ask you to please do the following first… Please search for “Your resident information is here”. Please check your junk or spam folder. Move emails from the spam / junk to your inbox or it will auto-delete. Emails are sent immediately as an automated response when you register. The details are sent directly to the email address that you provided yourself. If you do not have your email then send us as much information as possible to [email protected] – thank you. It will take several days to get a response – thank you for your patience. These queries will not be answered on social media.
Q. What happened for carepack 2023?
A. All residents were assigned. In excess of 22,000 residents were matched for 2023 and received a carepack (i.e. gift) for Christmas from you kind people and additionally for 2023 approximately 20,000 students and youth clubs also sent cards, letters and drawings – amazing!
Q. I registered last year, do I need to register again?
Yes. Each year is independent of each other. We do not store details and both volunteers and care homes are required to register each year that they wish to take part.
Q. I can’t login to my account?
A. Only admin have accounts. The only way to find out your resident’s details is via email – please check your spam / junk folder and move it to inbox before it auto-deletes.
Q. Is this website safe?
A. 100% safe – you will see a padlock on the top left of our website name so you know that all your data is secure from a laptop, phone, PC. We do not store your information, all data is deleted after 10 days as we do not need to access it, outside of any follow up that you may request.
NURSING HOMES & CARE HOMES
Q. I represent a Nursing Home / Care Home, how do we sign up our residents to receive gifts?
A. The 2024 campaign will reopen in October 2024. Please contact us then.
Q. What Nursing Homes and Care Homes are registered to receive carepacks for 2024?
A. Each year is independent. Care Home managers must sign up every year. We are not accepting sign-ups until October 2024 for Christmas 2024.
INFORMATION ON MY RESIDENT
Q. Can I find out what my resident would like or what size they are?
A. All homes were asked if they wanted to share likes or dislikes for the resident when they registered. If they wished to share that information you would have received it when you got your resident’s address. If you did not get any additional information on your resident, then we recommend you keep the carepack generic. We cannot get additional information on the resident’s likes and dislikes and we do not recommend you phone the home asking for personal information on the resident.
Q. I did not receive a name for my resident – it just says Male / Female
A. Different Nursing Homes have their own privacy policies and prefer to personalise the items when they arrive in to the care home instead. Rest assured, the staff will ensure your carepack reaches the right resident. You can write your card / letter inside to “Dear Friend” instead.
Q. Can I swap my resident for a different resident?
A. No, we do not exchange or swap residents for any reason. Your resident is a real person, please do not sign up if you do not intend to follow through.
Q. Will my resident write back to me?
A. No, please do not expect a response from your resident. Do include your name & address (and email) inside the carepack as the resident may wish to write back to you, but please keep in mind that many residents are not capable of responding. Please do not expect a response or an acknowledgement that your carepack was received.
Q. How will I know if my resident liked their carepack?
A. This is a giving initiative run by volunteers and we unfortunately cannot find out this information. Thank you for understanding. Please only take part if you are willing to give with an open heart without expecting anything in return.
Q. Can I return / re-assign my carepack to someone else?
A. By all means you may pass your resident details onto someone within your own circle. Unfortunately we cannot facilitate this for you. Every resident assigned is a real person and if you do not follow-through they will miss out on a carepack. Please only sign-up if you intend to follow-through.
WHAT TO PUT IN A CAREPACK
Q. Ideas for your carepack?
A. This is a list of welcome items provided by different care homes, you can of course come up with your own ideas. Please ensure you only send new items. Handmade gifts, like knitted scarves, etc. are always welcome.
Q. Is there anything I should not put in a carepack?
A. Please do not send used or cast-off items. All carepacks will be checked by nursing home staff to ensure they are suitable for that particular resident. Please do not send any of the following.
Q. What else can I include in my carepack?
A. You can also include the following if you wish to: A letter or Christmas card, your contact details (including email address) and a family photograph.
PACKAGING AND WRAPPING
Q. Can I wrap my presents?
A. Yes you can wrap the gifts in your carepack. The care home staff will be opening the carepacks with the residents and ensuring all items are suitable.
Q. Is there special carepack packaging?
A. No, some people use a padded envelope or a shoebox. Some people choose to purchase a box, however the majority of people just wrap in brown paper or in wrapping paper or even tape up a giftbag and post. We do not provide or sell any packaging for carepacks. Please remember to consider the weight of packaging you use as only packages up to 1kg qualify for freepost. You can purchase boxes from An Post, but they will not be free.
Q. Does carepack.ie sell carepacks or provide boxes?
A. NO, we simply provide names (or gender) and addresses of residents for you to send your carepack to. We do not have anything for sale and we do not provide carepacks or anything other than the name and address of the resident which is a FREE service.
Q. Is there anything else I need to consider when packaging my carepack?
A. Please do not send anything that could break or explode in transit. Ensure your carepack is fully sealed for travelling by post. Ensure all spill-able items are well wrapped up. Do not send breakables, alcohol, aerosols or other pressurised containers. See full lists of items that are not suitable for sending above
ADDRESSING MY CAREPACK
Q. How do I address my carepack?
A. Write FREEPOST where the Stamp would normally go, then use this format:
- Gender or First Name or Room Number
- Care Home Name
- Street / Area
- County
- Eircode
- c/o STAFF: (name provided)
- Ref: carepack.ie
Q. Do I need a surname for my resident?
A. No, in alignment with the Care Home privacy policy, we only use first names or gender or room number for residents. Your carepack will be delivered directly to the staff and they will know who your parcel is for. They distribute the carepacks.
Q. I did not receive a name for my resident – it just says Male / Female
A. Different Nursing Homes have their own privacy policies and prefer to personalise the items when they arrive in to the care home instead. Rest assured, the staff will ensure your carepack reaches the right resident. Write the gender you received on the envelope in place of a name. You can write your card / letter inside to “Dear Friend” instead. Please do not phone the home asking who your male / female resident is as they had the opportunity to provide this information on sign-up and chose not to.
POSTING AND HAND-DELIVERING
Q. How do I avail of FREEPOST with An Post?
A. An Post have generously waived postage fees for letters, large envelopes and packets up to 1kg to residents in full time residential care facilities within the state for the entire year of 2024 up until December 31st, 2024. Packages over 1kg will be charged in full – there is no discount for the first 1kg. You must write FREEPOST where the stamp should be. Freepost is an An Post initiative, so post offices should be aware. If your post office is not aware please direct them to An Post website where it is publicly announced. Please read full terms and conditions HERE. We have no control over the post.
Q. Is post free from everywhere?
A. Post under 1kg is free if posted from the Republic of Ireland (ROI) to an Irish registered care facility in the ROI. If you post from another country or from Northern Ireland – post is not free and your carepack may be delayed at customs and you may incur additional charges. Post from ROI to a care home in Northern Ireland is not free and you will be charged in full as this is outside of An Post’s remit.
Q. Can I post a carepack that weighs more than 1kg?
A. Yes, you can send a carepack larger than 1kg, but you will pay the postal rate in its entirety (there is no discount for the first 1kg). You can split your carepack over two packages if you want to avail of freepost, but please address both. Thank you.
Q. Can I hand deliver my carepack instead of posting?
A. Yes, you can deliver your carepack to the care home reception. Please do not ask to meet the resident. Please be aware that the activities co-ordinator will be dealing with the carepacks and staff covering reception at Christmas may be temporary and may not be aware of the initiative. You can deliver up until Christmas.
Q. What do I do with my order number or reference number?
A. Nothing, it is NOT required to go on your carepack. It does not serve a purpose, you can ignore it.
CONFIRMATION OF DELIVERY
Q. How will I know if my resident liked my gift?
A. This is a giving initiative run by volunteers and we unfortunately cannot find out this information. Thank you for understanding. Please give with an open heart without expecting anything in return.
SCHOOLS & YOUTH GROUPS
Q. We are a School / Youth Group and we’d love to get involved. What do we need to do?
A. Schools / Group section opens on November 1st, 2024.
Q. We are a School / Youth Group and we’d love to get involved. What do we need to do?
A. Please use our Schools / Group section. The schools section is intended for schools and youth groups who do not wish to send gifts, but would like to send cards, letters and drawings, etc. instead. Teachers or group leaders can order up to a maximum of 60 resident names per transaction. You can post individually or put all items for the one home in the one package. Please be aware that residents are allocated by county and not by home, so you may get allocated several different homes.
