You have a legal right to support if your needs assessment shows you meet the carers eligibility criteria.
Help offered to you could be information about support groups, services to give you a break from caring, and access to training courses.
The Care Act recognises the importance of supporting carers, raises awareness of carers rights, and puts them on an equal footing to the person they care for.
The carers assessment isn't about how well you provide care, it's all about helping you and making sure you have enough support.
How to get an assessment
Derbyshire All Age Carers Support Service (DAACSS) carry out carer assessments on our behalf. You can contact them to ask for an assessment, email info@derbyshirecarers.co.uk, or telephone: 01773 833833 or fill in the contact form on their website.
If the person you care for has an adult care worker, you can ask for your needs to be assessed at the same time they have their care and support assessment or review. To do this, speak to that worker or contact Call Derbyshire, telephone: 01629 533190.
If you're asking on behalf of someone else, please ask the carer for their consent first.
Assessing your needs
If you ask for an assessment, someone will arrange to meet you to talk about your role as a carer and the ways it affects your daily life.
They'll also record what needs to be done if you aren't able to provide support in an emergency, and they'll help you come up with a plan in case that happens.
If you meet the criteria you may be able to get services to help support you in your role.
This could be a carer personal budget to help you take a break from caring or to buy something to make your life easier.
You won't be charged for the services offered to you following a carers assessment. However, if services (such as respite in a care home) are provided to the person you care for, you may be charged for this under our paying for care policies.
How to make the most of a carers assessment
This is your chance to help the assessor understand the effect caring has on you. It might be a good idea to make a list, or keep a diary of everything you do to help the person you support.
Some things you might want to think about:
- Do you get enough sleep?
- Is your health affected by caring?
- Can you leave the person you're looking after?
- Are you worried about having to give up work?
- Do you get enough time to yourself?
- Are you worried about other commitments being affected by your caring role?
The assessment can be carried out at your home or at the home of the person you support. If there is more than one carer providing care in your household, you are both entitled to an assessment.
Remember that this assessment is about your needs as a carer. You should be able to talk about the needs of the person you are caring for in their own needs assessment.
If your situation changes, you can ask for it to be looked at again.
Carer personal budgets and carers breaks
If you need a carer assessment, you may be assessed as eligible for a carer personal budget.
This is money to support you in your caring role and help you to take a break from caring, or make things easier for you. It's not means tested and you will identify how best to spend this.
Find out if you're eligible for a carer personal budget.
Carers UK also has general information about taking a break from caring.