Carers and Social Capital
To some extent all initiatives designed to have the end result of carers being better supported in their caring role have the potential to increase supportive relationships, networks and contacts, as well as increased influence and participation. In the draft ‘Carers Solution Set,’ we have identified the following:
BEST – carer education impact study, Buckinghamshire
This report brings together information from an impact study on a carer education programme in Buckinghamshire amongst families who have a member with mental health problems. It demonstrates how involving families in the management of a range of mental health difficulties can impact on the recovery of the individual they support. The report identifies challenges and successes and makes recommendations for the future. It has relevance across impairment groups.
Older Family Carers Initiative, Torbay
Torbay older family carers’ initiative is an independent, confidential service that provides support to carers over 60. It was commissioned by the Learning Disability Partnership Board in 2003 and helps older carers plan for the future. The report for 2009 details objectives, what it has achieved and how the project helps carers including the use of ‘My Life’ books. Direct quotes from carers who have used the service are included.
Salford City Council and NHS Salford to support Carers are piloting personal budgets for carers. They started a small-scale pilot running from 2009/10 (targeting around 40 carers)with the aim of wider rollout in 10/11 (aiming for around 750 carers). Partners include Salford Community Health & Social Care, Salford Childrens Services , NHS Salford, Salford Carers Centre, Manchester Jewish Federation.
Two individual stories of personal budgets building carers’ social capital
Andrez juggles working full time as a fork lift truck driver with being the main carer for both his parents. Andrez’s father has had a stroke and his mother has dementia. Andrez’s hobby is to go deep sea fishing, but owing to his caring responsibilities hasn’t been able to think about doing this of late. By having a carers assessment and the opportunity to think about how he might make use of a Carers Personal Budget Andrez applied for a Carers Personal Budget to fund fishing tackle and expenses for trips.
Christineis caring for her partner Ben who has had to give up work recently owing to the onset of a medical condition. She decided to use part of the budget to access a course of pamper sessions. Her neighbour is a beautician and has agreed to give Christine a lift to the salon once a week to have a back massage. This will give Christine a break away from the house, the massage will relieve tension and it will allow for her to get to know her neighbour therefore reducing isolation. She will use the remaining part of her Carers Personal Budget to buy an annual LeisurePass, enabling her to access the gym and swimming pool at her local leisure centre free of charge when she gets the opportunity.
In Tameside there are a range of options for carers which include ‘Have go days’. These encourage carers to try a taster of either a pastime or pursuit.
In Hullthey found that many people with a learning disability didn’t have the chance of a social life beyond their day service and some didn’t even have that. Being excluded from ordinary social activity was associated especially with having more complex physical care needs or having what people have termed ‘challenging behaviour’. Teaming up with Sports Development colleagues and with nurses from the Humber NHS Trust they began to address that 10 years ago using a little bit of Carers Grant. Now they are running 20 Scene sessions a week for around 170 adults and young people. The programme includes sports of all kinds, fitness sessions, swimming, a cinema club and theatre work. But mostly it’s about people having fun in their free time. No-one is excluded and they have many stories of people who just seem so much more at ease when they’re in a place they want to be. One parent/carer called Scene: Safe, Caring, Enabling, Nurturing and Empowering and that’s what it’s come to stand for. Families, as well as getting regular breaks regularly report how much the person they care for looks forward to going out….just like the rest of us.
Emergency alert Card – discount directory, NE Lincolnshire
This is an example from North East Lincolnshire of a carers emergency scheme card and shows the additional benefits that can be linked to the card which offers the holder discounts at a wide range of local businesses.
Working Carers Project, Lancashire
Lancashire have relaunched a scheme for working carers aimed at providing support and advice around a number of issues relating to managing the balance of work and caring responsibilities. This document provides information about how the scheme operates and its benefits.
Lancashire‘Time for Me’ scheme
Every carer in Lancashire, once they have been registered with their local carers centre for at least 6 months, can apply for up to £350.00 for anything that they feel will give them a break.
One carer found it difficult to leave her home on a regular basis due to her caring role. She was keen to ensure that her husband did not go into respite. The Time For Me fund paid for a new sewing machine. She set up her spare bedroom as a workshop and began o develop her sewing skills. Eventually, friends started to ask her to make clothes or undertake repairs. This developed into a small business.
Shared Care Network (SCN)was founded by short break scheme organisers who felt a need for a co-ordinating national body to share information and promote good practice in this newly developing field. It was registered as a charity in March 1990. Today, Shared Care Network represents around 180 services UKwide providing short break services to support disabled children and their families. Their vision is of a society where disabled children & young people and their families can enjoy full social inclusion. They believeeasy access to reliable, flexible and enjoyable short break services is a vitalcomponent in achieving this change.
There are a range of opportunities to provide short break services to disabled children. Some short break carers provide day care, others provide overnight care. Some look after one child. Others look after a number of children. Befrienders support disabled young people to access activities in the community. Contract carers provide short breaks on a paid basis and tend to do this as more of a full time job looking after a number of disabled children.
There are 8,000 short-break carers in the UK who offer regular care and support in their own homes to children and young people thereby giving family carers time to themselves and the young person different experiences and opportunities. SCN estimate there are 10,000 children and their families waiting for short breaks because there are not enough carers to meet demand.
Our Lives,Cumbria
Our Lives Cumbria is a family leadership organisation that shares common goals and uses their own stories about self-directed support to illustrate how it can transform family lives for the better. They help individuals to deliver presentations and training and attend events. They are developing a family based support group that connects and contributes to the whole community.
Incorporation of Carers Issues in Neighbourhood Plans, Blackburn and Darwen
In Blackburn and Darwin the senior carers strategy manager worked to make links between the carers strategy, Local Strategic Partnerships and Local Area Agreements and to encourage others to ‘think carer’ when planning. Specific suggestions were made about how draft neighborhood plans could better support carers whilst reaching their objectives. A similar approach has been taken with other areas including the PCT and their Triple Aim Initiative.
Carers awareness training – pilot, Lancashire
Lancashire’s multi agency strategy was launched in 2009. It aims to raise awareness of carers and their needs amongst existing community based groups and help to identify ‘hidden carers’. The training has been delivered to over 70 community organisations. Participants are encouraged to reflect on their own organization practice to identify how they can better support and identify carers. Organisations booking the training include Libraries, Police, Colleges, Neighbourhood management, Job Centre Plus, as well as many voluntary sector organizations and health services.
Contact:
Robin Murray-Neill, Carers and Personalisation Advisor
Putting People First team -Department of Health
Bernadette Simpson, National Personalisation Advisor – Carers
Department of Health