Carer's Assessment

All the information in this post was taken from Carer's Oxfordshire and Oxfordshire County Council and consolidated into one post for your information and may be subject to change.

What is a carer's assessment

If caring has a major impact on your life you can talk to Carers Oxfordshire about the help and support you may need. This is called a carer's assessment. This can happen even if the person you care for is unwilling to accept help.

To work out what support would be most helpful, we need to consider:

what help the person you care for needs
what help you are providing or you intend to provide (for example, when the person you care for is discharged from hospital)
what help you require to maintain your caring role
what help Oxfordshire County Council or other organisations may provide
your wish to work, undertake training/education or leisure activities.

Your assessment gives you the chance to discuss your needs.

You should also be able to contribute to the discussion of the needs of the person you care for so your needs are taken into account when planning services or options for them.

If the person you care for is not receiving any care services, they may benefit from having their own assessment. Please contact Carers Oxfordshire on 0345 050 7666.

What is a parent carer?

Parent carers are people with parental responsibility for a disabled child under the age of 18, who provide care on a regular basis.

If you care for a child

If you care for a child with a disability, your own needs will be considered as part of the family assessment or you can have a separate assessment.

Contact Oxfordshire County Council on 0345 050 7666 and an adviser will give you information about a family assessment.

What are my rights?

Carers’ rights to an assessment

The Care Act 2014 places the 'cared for' and carers on an equal footing. It ensures that carers have the same entitlement to support to enable them to continue in their caring role while maintaining their wellbeing.

A carers' assessment offers carers the opportunity to think about how their caring role impacts on their own wellbeing, and what they wish to achieve in terms of their personal outcomes.

What is a carers' assessment?

A carers' assessment will:

establish the carer’s needs for support, the outcomes that the carer wants to achieve in day-to-day life

how these impact on their wellbeing as well as the sustainability of their caring role

consider the carer’s present and future needs for support and their ability and willingness to provide care now and in the future

establish an individual care plan.

How a carers' assessment can help you

A carers' assessment gives you the chance to tell us about your caring role so that we can provide you with the right information, advice or support. We may, for example, give you details of carers’ support groups in your area or you may be entitled to a payment to spend on things that make your caring role easier.

Your physical and emotional wellbeing and quality of life are at the heart of the assessment and there will be opportunities throughout for you to tell us if or how your caring role can be best supported.

When completing your assessment, think about your life, what you enjoy and would like to achieve, and the effect that your caring role has on you and your family.

If you or the person you care for are frightened of being hurt or otherwise harmed go to our emergency help pages. If you have reached a crisis in your caring role call 0345 050 7666. You do not have to complete the assessment form to get help.

How to complete a carer's assessment

You can ask for an assessment at any time. If your situation changes and you need more help, you can ask for a reassessment.

You do not have to have a carer's assessment; it will not stop the person you care for from receiving services.

If you care for an adult, it is your choice to either have a separate assessment or a joint assessment with the person you care for. If you prefer, you can ask a friend or representative to be with you for your assessment. You are entitled to a written copy of your carer's assessment.

What happens next?

Once you have completed a carer's assessment form, the information will be reviewed by Carers Oxfordshire. They will consider the options you have chosen and will contact you accordingly.

Charges

There is no charge for any assessment
We do not charge for the services we provide to carers
A charge may be made for services we provide to the person you are caring for, depending on their financial circumstances.
There are no charges for services for children under 18.