Carer's Assessmnt .... what's the point?

[Annypurple]

Today we had our first social worker visit, she is in the County dementia social work team.

We had a visit because I phoned asking for my right to a carers assessment (new Care Act giving entitlement to carers to have an assessment). Also an assessment for my OH as his condition is deteriorating and we both need increased and appropriate support in our different needs.

The outcome of the short visit is that there is no help that can be given to me (or us) because our savings exceed the minimum means assessment level £23k.

So that was the end of that.

I wonder what the point of implementing the new Act is as it doesn't add anything to the previous situation. I had hoped for more. Like other non-financial support, advice, help, contacts. But no. A suggestion that I advertise myself in the local shop for a carer if I want more practical support.

Anyone else got experience of an assessment?

 

[fizzie]

We had a carers assessment some time ago and there was no means testing attached to the carers assessment - I was given 6 hours of free care a week which were to give me a break. I go to a carers group regularly and noone is paying for their carers assessment hours - others may have a different experience

 

[jaymor]

Your OH should have an assessment to decide what care is needed at this stage and you should have an assessment as to what help you need to continue to be your OH's carer.

Once both sets of needs have been identified then you should be told of what is available as in day care, respite, care within the home etc. Then the financial assessment to decide who pays.

Regardless of whether the LA are involved or you are self funding you should be helped to find the care and facilities that best suit you both.

 

[bemused1]

My experience is the same as amypurple, told there was nothing available because we are self funding.

 

[chick1962]

They did try with us . The lady was lovely and I might get help with driving lessons but won't find out until after the 11th. It's always good to have an assessment in writing explaining the difficulties , one never knows if it becomes handy for some authorities or another.


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[Yanni]

I had a carer's assessment and now have 2x3 hours per week when my husband is taken out and I can have some time to myself and get things done which are impossible to do when he is there. This is not means tested as he is over the limit for funding. I live in Hampshire but on the border with West Sussex where no comparable scheme exists so there seems to be the usual discrepancy between areas.

 

[marionq]

It looks as if LAs interpret the Act to suit themselves. In the early years finance was not mentioned to me other than to urge that I got POA. The first time a financial assessment was made was in relation to a place in a care home. In fact he is still at home with me. All the advice beforehand, the voluntary assistance ( a few hours a week), the places at day care, all were put in place regardless of finance. I pay £15 a day plus £5 for lunch for John at daycare but if we were on benefits we would pay nothing. It seems very unfair to me that your LA provides no advice or assistance because you have some savings.

I could not have got through the last four years without a backup primarily from the Memory Clinic with their Link workers and CPNs. Yes, they are NHS rather than LA but in this new joined up system they are supposed to talk to each other about client needs.

 

[bemused1]

It looks as if LAs interpret the Act to suit themselves. In the early years finance was not mentioned to me other than to urge that I got POA. The first time a financial assessment was made was in relation to a place in a care home. In fact he is still at home with me. All the advice beforehand, the voluntary assistance ( a few hours a week), the places at day care, all were put in place regardless of finance. I pay £15 a day plus £5 for lunch for John at daycare but if we were on benefits we would pay nothing. It seems very unfair to me that your LA provides no advice or assistance because you have some savings.

I could not have got through the last four years without a backup primarily from the Memory Clinic with their Link workers and CPNs. Yes, they are NHS rather than LA but in this new joined up system they are supposed to talk to each other about client needs.

Nice in theory but not in practice. Joined up thinking may be years down the line in some areas.

 

[Scarlett123]

There is still a postcode lottery, with regards to help available, and who pays what, and it's an absolute minefield to negotiate. Like a lot of Carers, I didn't have a clue where to begin, and when I contacted Social Services, and a SW came to visit us, I naively assumed she would be "our" SW.

This wasn't the case. Once we were in the system, every time I asked for another session at the Day Centre, we were assigned another SW. I can't remember which but John either had 7 SWs in 5 months, or 5 in 7 months, and each one wanted to carry out their own assessment, even though the previous colleague had done this as little as 3 weeks previously - hence my idea for a Statement of John's current position, medication, my health etc named "To Whom It May Concern".

When John first went independently to a Day Centre, a couple of times a week for a few hours, which was an Age Concern facility, for anyone over 50, he paid £12 a year membership, and £1.50 a day, plus extra for lunch and morning and afternoon tea and biscuits.

Then one day, when I went to collect him (he was in the middle stages then), he was missing. The staff told me they couldn't stop him from leaving, so I drove round frantically, and finally found he'd made his way home, which meant negotiating several main roads.

This coincided with a visit that week to the Memory Clinic, and the Day Centre saying that he could only return as a "Day Opportunities Member", which would mean he would not be able to have access to the door codes etc, and would have "bespoke care".

And then they said this would increase "from £1.50 a day to £9", which I thought was a huge jump. And then they added the words "per hour"!!!! So Marionq, your £15 a day was cheap compared to mine! I still had to pay for lunch, but the tea and coffee would now be free. Whoopee!

I had a visit from the Finance Director, to calculate how much I would have to pay and what financial help I would get. And this is where I started studying every government document, online, about care in the community. There are so may hidden clauses, and knowledge is key in these things. You must always stress that your finances are private, and nothing to do with the calculations, and it is only the person who needs care, whose finances should be taken into account. I know I've saved several members a lot of money who hadn't realised this.

I can't remember the exact figures now, but I ended up paying about 2/3 of the total costs, and decided that 4 hours break a day was vital for me to be able to have a sleep, or rashly have coffee with a friend occasionally. He had 5 sessions a week at Age Concern Clubs, so 20 hours in total, for which I paid about £120, plus lunches (but not coffee!!), and then I found a Peer Group Club, which operated one day a week in our area, and paid £10 for 4 hours, including lunch, coffee, biscuits etc which was a bargain.

At that time Crossroads was funding a Peoples Lottery scheme, and I had 12 hours care every 4 weeks, which I used as 3 x one hour "bath" sessions a week, and this was subsidised, so I only paid about £25 a month. But all other Care visits cost me £16 an hour.

So as well as caring for your loved one, when your brain is mush anyway, through sheer exhaustion, you have to be a financial expert. Which is why, any help I can give anyone, is yours for the asking.

 

[sleepless]

My experience is the same as amypurple, told there was nothing available because we are self funding.

Same here. Surprising how often professionals encourage me to 'contact Adult Social Care for an assessment' -- they really seem to think that there is free respite available for everyone. As it is, we must pay, and it is certainly quicker, easier, less stressful to pick up the phone myself to the care agency we use anyway, than to involve the 'services'.

Only thanks to the voluntary sector, we can have three hours a month free sitting service (via our local Carers Association.)

 

[Ottoman68]

Carer's Assessment - what's the point?

I was told by a Care Co-ordinator attached to a Memory Clinic and another attached to the Council that I should apply for a Carer's Assessment as the various benefits would be free and definitely not means-tested.

I went on line. Not only are you disqualified from free care if you have savings over £23,250, but a very small weekly income also disqualifies you.

So I would have to undergo a battery of questions and have to give financial information about my husband, but then I would have to pay for the care THEY select. I think not! I'll hire in my own help as and when I need it.

Am also in the throws of applying for Attendance Allowance which not only is not means-tested but allows us to select and obtain the precise care we need.

 

[Selinacroft]

We have amazing support from our local authority but I think they received some funding from the government towards carers as we have such a large retired population.
I've just had a carers assessment and they told me off for not making the most of the sitting service. I've looked into this some more and I have an appointment with someone next week to see how I can make use of it the best way. I have been given an allowance of 30 hours per quarter which is an hour or 2 per week to give me some respite. This is not means tested and funded by the council. I've also received a grant for a break which you can use for a week away or a couple of weekends. There are also local beach huts available for carers to book a few days each year and therapy vouchers for massage type treatements and cinema tickets plus entitlement to a discount at local leisure facilities. There are other social evenings and day trips that you can chose from and attend if you book through the carers centre. They are supportive with providing information on day centres, have a carers centre and drop in coffee mornings and I've just been on a Dementia course which they funded. All of these are accessed through the Carers Assessment and I count my lucky stars I live where I do.
I would just add to this -we are self funding and still get all this help.

 

[Scarlett123]

We have amazing support from our local authority but I think they received some funding from the government towards carers as we have such a large retired population.
I've just had a carers assessment and they told me off for not making the most of the sitting service. I've looked into this some more and I have an appointment with someone next week to see how I can make use of it the best way. I have been given an allowance of 30 hours per quarter which is an hour or 2 per week to give me some respite. This is not means tested and funded by the council. I've also received a grant for a break which you can use for a week away or a couple of weekends. There are also local beach huts available for carers to book a few days each year and therapy vouchers for massage type treatements and cinema tickets plus entitlement to a discount at local leisure facilities. There are other social evenings and day trips that you can chose from and attend if you book through the carers centre. They are supportive with providing information on day centres, have a carers centre and drop in coffee mornings and I've just been on a Dementia course which they funded. All of these are accessed through the Carers Assessment and I count my lucky stars I live where I do.
I would just add to this -we are self funding and still get all this help.

As I said, it's a postcode lottery. Our London Borough has the largest number of over 65s, but they have still cut everything to the bone. I think your "30 hours a quarter" sounds similar to my 12 hours every 4 weeks - and I was so grateful that I only paid about £25 a month, as it was heavily subsidised.

But that was 2 years ago. My neighbour applied and that arrangement has now stopped, and I felt awful that I had recommended it, and it's now ceased.

 

[Scarlett123]

I was told by a Care Co-ordinator attached to a Memory Clinic and another attached to the Council that I should apply for a Carer's Assessment as the various benefits would be free and definitely not means-tested.

I went on line. Not only are you disqualified from free care if you have savings over £23,250, but a very small weekly income also disqualifies you.

So I would have to undergo a battery of questions and have to give financial information about my husband, but then I would have to pay for the care THEY select. I think not! I'll hire in my own help as and when I need it.

Am also in the throws of applying for Attendance Allowance which not only is not means-tested but allows us to select and obtain the precise care we need.

Sweetie, I filled in forms for CAB last year as a volunteer, and completed many for Attendance Allowance. You may well find that you can get it backdated, as long as you give all your GP details, and the date hubby was diagnosed is recorded.

Secondly, the £23,250 only applies to the savings of the person needing care, not both of you, and if you have a joint account, it's then £46,500. I used some of John's savings to get him a new bed, an all singing and dancing armchair, and replaced things that were necessary, and all this was quite acceptable.

Also, are you claiming for the 25% Council Tax reduction? If there are just the 2 of you in your home, and one has "Severe Mental Impairment", you can claim, and it's easy - and it's backdated. You just phone the CT Department of your Local Authority, and they'll send you a very simple one page form.

You put the basic details of the claimant on the front, and then your GP signs the reverse, with the date the claimant was first diagnosed. I'd kept a copy of the letter from the consultant, although the GP should have had it on John's notes, but made a further copy for the GP - and our refund was backdated about 6 years!

Also, I was the one who chose the Day Centres that John attended, although he'd already been going to that one for a while (see my previous post), and I don't think your Local Authority can challenge a decision you make, without good reason - but I may be wrong, as all LAs are autonomous.

If you need any help with the form for Attendance Allowance, or anything else, please PM me, and I'll be happy to help.

 

[Beate]

You guys probably know by now that I live in the one London and UK borough that does not charge for home care. That includes day care, carers and sitters as long as they are approved through an SS care package. It does not include respite (but it's a low weekly charge) and care homes. I feel very fortunate, although OH would always be classed as LA-funded due to his limited resources. The real challenge here is actually managing to get the support you need as social services like to be sloooowwww. But when you get it in place it's invaluable.

However, some services have ceased or been cut down, and a lot of charities which are part funded by the council, are having to fight to retain this funding. So nothing is certain in this world.

 

[chick1962]

Yes the weekend away has been cut here in Kent, as I found out and the £200 has been cut too but the lady who visited is lovely and keeps in touch via E mails too


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[Chuggalug]

There is still a postcode lottery, with regards to help available, and who pays what, and it's an absolute minefield to negotiate. Like a lot of Carers, I didn't have a clue where to begin, and when I contacted Social Services, and a SW came to visit us, I naively assumed she would be "our" SW.

This wasn't the case. Once we were in the system, every time I asked for another session at the Day Centre, we were assigned another SW. I can't remember which but John either had 7 SWs in 5 months, or 5 in 7 months, and each one wanted to carry out their own assessment, even though the previous colleague had done this as little as 3 weeks previously - hence my idea for a Statement of John's current position, medication, my health etc named "To Whom It May Concern".

When John first went independently to a Day Centre, a couple of times a week for a few hours, which was an Age Concern facility, for anyone over 50, he paid £12 a year membership, and £1.50 a day, plus extra for lunch and morning and afternoon tea and biscuits.

Then one day, when I went to collect him (he was in the middle stages then), he was missing. The staff told me they couldn't stop him from leaving, so I drove round frantically, and finally found he'd made his way home, which meant negotiating several main roads.

This coincided with a visit that week to the Memory Clinic, and the Day Centre saying that he could only return as a "Day Opportunities Member", which would mean he would not be able to have access to the door codes etc, and would have "bespoke care".

And then they said this would increase "from £1.50 a day to £9", which I thought was a huge jump. And then they added the words "per hour"!!!! So Marionq, your £15 a day was cheap compared to mine! I still had to pay for lunch, but the tea and coffee would now be free. Whoopee!

I had a visit from the Finance Director, to calculate how much I would have to pay and what financial help I would get. And this is where I started studying every government document, online, about care in the community. There are so may hidden clauses, and knowledge is key in these things. You must always stress that your finances are private, and nothing to do with the calculations, and it is only the person who needs care, whose finances should be taken into account. I know I've saved several members a lot of money who hadn't realised this.

I can't remember the exact figures now, but I ended up paying about 2/3 of the total costs, and decided that 4 hours break a day was vital for me to be able to have a sleep, or rashly have coffee with a friend occasionally. He had 5 sessions a week at Age Concern Clubs, so 20 hours in total, for which I paid about £120, plus lunches (but not coffee!!), and then I found a Peer Group Club, which operated one day a week in our area, and paid £10 for 4 hours, including lunch, coffee, biscuits etc which was a bargain.

At that time Crossroads was funding a Peoples Lottery scheme, and I had 12 hours care every 4 weeks, which I used as 3 x one hour "bath" sessions a week, and this was subsidised, so I only paid about £25 a month. But all other Care visits cost me £16 an hour.

So as well as caring for your loved one, when your brain is mush anyway, through sheer exhaustion, you have to be a financial expert. Which is why, any help I can give anyone, is yours for the asking.

I'm sorry Scarlett. My finances were never private! If it hadn't been for me throwing hundreds extra in for my husband's care home, and paying a top up float to the care home on top of care fees from my income, he/we would now be thousands of pounds in debt.

I kept getting told I should apply for pension credit. He's already had that TAKEN AWAY. So he can't have anything other than a single man's pension, now. If I'm being 'advised' to do something illegal (ask for extra benefits) when I know from the paperwork I have that he's already getting everything he's entitled to, then someone needs a good lesson in truth from this particular LA I'm having to deal with.

The DWP sent someone in last year to assess him for benefits. They can't give more than they are legally allowed to. He gets a lovely warm place to live; three meals a day and someone to help him keep himself clean. We're both paying for that. Someone else in the village who had a wife to care for knows that carers do have to stump up the care fees. Without our income, on top of those we care for, coming in; there would be one hoo-hah of a mess. I started being charged last year, even before I had my own income.

 

[Annypurple]

We had a carers assessment some time ago and there was no means testing attached to the carers assessment - I was given 6 hours of free care a week which were to give me a break. I go to a carers group regularly and noone is paying for their carers assessment hours - others may have a different experience

Wow! What a different story you have! Couldn't be further from what's been offered to me. On reading others' responses it's obviously hugely dependant on where you live which is crazy as all,of us have the same needs for assessment and support!

I know that there is a local dementia support charity so I'm going to go to them next but thought I should first seek support from LA.

Thanks for your reply.

 

[Annypurple]

They did try with us . The lady was lovely and I might get help with driving lessons but won't find out until after the 11th. It's always good to have an assessment in writing explaining the difficulties , one never knows if it becomes handy for some authorities or another.


Sent from my iPhone using Talking Point

You mean you've received a copy of the social worker's written assessment ? That sounds good; open. I suppose the 11th is in the next financial year. Hope get help now you've been offered help.

Good luck with the driving lessons!

 

[Annypurple]

Your OH should have an assessment to decide what care is needed at this stage and you should have an assessment as to what help you need to continue to be your OH's carer.

Once both sets of needs have been identified then you should be told of what is available as in day care, respite, care within the home etc. Then the financial assessment to decide who pays.

Regardless of whether the LA are involved or you are self funding you should be helped to find the care and facilities that best suit you both.

Yes, I (we) should, but we didn't/haven't through the contact we had last week. This was what we'd expected but not what we got. The SW seemed completely at a loss as to how she could offer a thing because a) her team is based 30 miles away and she doesn't know anything about this area and b) she simply dismissed being able to offer anything as our savings/I come is greater than the limit. That's why I wrote here because it felt wrong and clearly people have had a very different experience depending upon where they live and who they are visited by. No consistency. No fairness.