Carer support page

Who is a carer?

A ‘carer’ is someone who gives care and support to their partner, child, friend, or another close relative. The person that you care for should be an adult. They should be age 18 or over. ‘Care and support’ can mean practical help or emotional support.

Who is a young carer?

  • You’re a young carer if you’re under 18 and help to look after a relative with a disability, illness, mental health condition, or drug or alcohol problem.
  • If you’re a young carer, you probably look after one of your parents or care for a brother or sister.
  • You may do extra jobs in and around the home, such as cooking, cleaning or helping someone get dressed and move around.
  • You may also give a lot of physical help to a parent, brother or sister who’s disabled or ill.
  • Along with doing things to help your brother or sister, you may be giving them and your parents emotional support, too.

If you are a young carer, we and others are here to help you, click on the link below to help you:

https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/social-care-and-support-guide/support-and-benefits-for-carers/help-for-young-carers/

Here is a video of the experience of a young carer:

Why is it important that we know you are a carer?

We know that carers are at much higher risk of becoming ill themselves, we also know that many carers are inclined to ignore symptoms because they can’t contemplate becoming ill themselves. If we know you are a carer, we can ask you about any physical or mental health issues you may have because of caring. We can also try to be more flexible in terms of finding you appointments, etc.

We can:

  • If your doctor and surgery know you are a carer they can:
  • support you with any physical health issues related to your caring role, like tiredness
  • make you aware of the carer’s flu jab each year
  • talk to you about your mental health and the impact of your caring role
  • provide you with general information and advice
  • refer you to helpful organisations and services that can improve your caring situation
  • give you flexible appointments at times that suit you
  • have an agreement to share information about the condition of the person you care for (with their consent)

As a carer, you might be interested in having an NHS healthcheck (https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/nhs-health-check/ hyperlink):

The NHS Health Check is a free check-up of your overall health. It can tell you whether you’re at higher risk of getting certain health problems, such as: heart disease, kidney disease, Diabetes, stroke

During the check-up you’ll also discuss how to reduce your risk of these conditions and dementia.

If you’re over 65, you will also be told the signs and symptoms of dementia to look out for.

Carers support locally: