Carers assessment

A carers assessment is when we find out if you can get support to make caring easier for you.

How will a carers assessment help you?

You can tell the social worker:

• how caring affects you and what support you feel would help
• how you look after the person you are caring for
• how support for yourself would help you and the person you are caring.

After the assessment, we may find that you are entitled to extra benefits or discounts and that you can apply for a carers personal budget.

You can also set up an emergency plan so that the person you care for is safe, if you are involved in an emergency.

You can talk openly about your life as a carer - the good bits and the bad.

Before you have a carers assessment it may be a good idea to make a list, or keep a diary, of everything you do to help look after the person you care for. Here are some things to think about:

• Do you get enough sleep?
• Is your health affected by caring?
• For how long can you leave the person you care for?
• Can you get out and about?
• Are you worried about work, college or other activities?
• Is caring affecting your work, studies or other activities?
• Do you get enough time to yourself?
• Are your other relationships affected?
• Do you want information about benefits?
• Are you able, or willing, to carry on caring?
• Is the person you are caring for getting enough help?

We can do the assessment at your home, at the home of the person you are caring for, or at Salford Carers Centre.

If there is more than one carer in your household, you can all have your own assessment.

Services that may help you and the person you care for include:

• someone to help with the personal care of the person you look after
• carers personal budget to spend on taking a break from caring
• changes to equipment
• adaptations to the home
• emotional support

This assessment is about your needs as a carer but you can talk about the needs of the person you are caring for.

If your situation changes - for example you need more support - you can ask for a re-assessment of both your needs.

How to ask for your carers assessment

If you, or the person you care for, already has a health or social care worker, ask them for an assessment.

If the person you care for is in hospital, ask hospital staff to arrange a carers assessment. You can also speak to the hospital social work team. It is best to ask as early as possible, before the person leaves hospital.

Salford Carers Centre can discuss the assessment with you, see if there is any help you want and make sure that everything goes smoothly.

What will happen next?

We will contact you to arrange the assessment at a time and place to suit you. If you want, this can be private and away from the person you care for.

What will happen after the assessment?

We will record the assessment and anything that needs to change, based on what you tell us. If there are changes, we will write a support plan with you - this tells us what support you need and how you would like it.

If you want, we will give you a copy of your assessment and support plan.

We will tell you what to do if you disagree with the assessment, the way it was carried out, or its outcome. You will be offered a review of your needs if your needs change.

Caring for yourself

Caring can be rewarding but it can make great demands on your time, your health and your emotions. It can be very exhausting. If you ever feel at the end of your tether, please telephone your family doctor, Salford Carers Centre (telephone 0161 833 0217) or us (telephone 0161 909 6517). Let us know how you feel and what help you need.

This page was last updated on 10 August 2011