Carers Assessment
If you are caring for someone aged 18+ you are entitled to a carers assessment by the local authority of the person you care for. This looks at the impact caring has and what support is available to help you in your caring role and to live your life well. It will cover many aspects of your life including health and wellbeing, ability to work and impact on relationships. The assessment will determine if you are eligible for any support from the local authority. If you do not meet eligibility for local authority support they will provide you with information and advice on how to access support from other local services for carers.
Parent Carers Needs Assessment (PCNA)
If you are caring for someone aged under 18 who lives in the Richmond and Kingston boroughs you are entitled to a PCNA. This is a self-assessment form and Richmond Carers Centre can support you in completing it. The form can be found on the Achieving for Children website
Needs Assessment for an adult
The person you are caring for is entitled to an assessment of their own needs by the local authority where they live. This will assess their physical, mental and emotional needs and as their carer you can be involved in this assessment. The assessment will determine if they are eligible for any support. There is a threshold for financial support from the local authority and this would be assessed through a financial assessment. If they do not meet eligibility for support they will provide them with information and advice on local services who can help meet their needs. You can download a leaflet with information on paying for care and support. If you would like a hardcopy of this please ask Richmond Carers Centre.
Contact Richmond Access Team for Richmond residents.
Needs Assessment for a child
If you feel that the child you care for would benefit from an assessment of their needs you can talk to the Single Point of Access (SPA) about this.
Carers Emergency Card
This scheme is to ensure there is emergency cover for the person you care for if something unexpected happened to you. You need to contact the local authority about this and they will conduct a carers assessment for you (see above) and give you a form to complete to apply for a carers emergency card.
Carers Allowance
This is a benefit for carers aged 16 and over. There is an eligibility criteria you will need to meet to be able to claim carers allowance. If you claim certain other benefits you may not be eligible. Carers Allowance can also have an impact on other benefits.
For further information and support in applying contact Richmond Carers Centre or Richmond AID
Carers Credit
If you are caring for someone for more than 20 hours a week but are not eligible to claim Carers Allowance, you may be eligible to claim Carers Credit. Carers Credit is a National Insurance Credit that helps with gaps in your national insurance record. Your state pension is based on your National Insurance record.
For further information and support in applying, contact Richmond AID
