Carer’s needs assessment
If you are a carer who appears to have a need
for support you should be offered a carer’s needs
assessment by the local authority of the person you are
looking after.
If you are not offered a carer’s
needs assessment, you should
contact the local authority and ask
for one.
You can have a needs assessment
no matter what your level of need,
the amount of care you provide
or your financial means. A carer’s
needs assessment is a legal
entitlement and is for all carers
who, regardless of their age, care
for someone who is disabled, ill or
elderly. If you want you can ask for
a carer’s needs assessment before
taking on a caring role.
Your carer’s needs assessment
should cover:
• your caring role and how it
affects your life and wellbeing
• your feelings and choices about
caring
• your health
• work, study, training, leisure
• relationships, social activities and
your goals
• housing
• planning for emergencies
(such as carer emergency card
schemes)
Looking after someone
Following the assessment the local
authority will decide if you are
eligible for support to be provided
either to you or to the person you
are looking after to reduce the
impact of caring on you. Support
could be provided by the local
authority, or in the form of a direct
payment.
Some examples of the kind of
support you could get include
driving lessons, taxi fares, a laptop,
help with housework or gardening
or a gym membership.
Whether the local authority will
pay for any support will depend on
your financial situation (if services
are provided to you and if the
local authority is one which does
charge for carer support) or on the
financial situation of the person
you are looking after (if services are
provided to them).
Even if you are not considered to
be eligible for support the local
authority must provide you with
information and advice on local
services to prevent your needs from
developing further.
Find out more at
carersuk.org/wales/
assessment
carerswales.org
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