As a carer you understand the needs of the person you are caring for, any medication they require and their care and support needs. You may find yourself putting the needs of the person you care for before your own, so here are a few things you can do right now to help you in your caring role.
Register as a carer
If you are 16 or over, contact us and register yourself as a carer to keep up to date with the latest information and support that is available to you. You can register with Carer Support Wiltshire online here; https://carersupportwiltshire.co.uk/get-started/ or by calling 0800 181 4118 during office hours.
Tell your GP you are a carer
Register as a carer with your GP surgery and ask about what support they offer to carers. They may offer flexible appointments, carer clinics, health checks and free flu jabs.
Find out about support for the person you care for
If you are caring for an adult, speak to the Wiltshire Council Advice and Contact team about support that may be available to the person you care for.
You can request a Care Act assessment even if the person you care for is not eligible for support funded by adult care. This can help identify any support service or equipment that would be help both you and the person you care for. You can contact them:
- On 0300 456 0111;
- By emailing adviceandcontact@wiltshire.gov.uk
- Or by completing an online referral form, which you can find here; https://adultslas.wiltshire.gov.uk/web/portal/pages/referrals/acreferral
Support for a child or young carer
If you are looking after a child aged under 18 or you are seeking support for a young carer, speak to the Wiltshire Council Families and Children’s Services Integrated Front Door on 0300 456 0108. They can tell you what support your child may be entitled to and can arrange an assessment.
You can also find out more about the Wiltshire Local Offer for children and young people by going to https://localoffer.wiltshire.gov.uk/.
Think about the future
Think about what plans you might need to make for the future, including whether or not you may need to manage your loved one’s health and financial affairs.
Find out more about planning for the future in our information hub www.carersupportwiltshire.co.uk/information-hub/managing-someones-affairs-2
Managing financially
Consider how you are going to manage financially – there may be benefits and financial support available to you.
Find out more about the financial support that might be available to you in our information hub here; https://carersupportwiltshire.co.uk/resource-centre/money-and-benefits/.
Plan for emergencies
Having an emergency plan in place can help ease your worries if you are not able to care for those you look after at any point in the future. It can also be useful to let family members or friends know of the plan, where it is kept or even provide them with a copy of the plan. Mobilise also has some great information on creating an emergency plan which can be found here https://www.mobiliseonline.co.uk/emergency-planning-for-carers. Or you can find out more here; https://carersupportwiltshire.co.uk/information-hub/howtoplanforemergency/.
Take a break and chat with other carers
Join our friendly Facebook group or come along to our cafes where you can chat to others in a similar situation.
- Find out what events we have running for carers here; https://carersupportwiltshire.co.uk/whats-on/
- Join other carers in our Facebook group by clicking here; http://facebook.com/groups/carersupportwiltshiregroup
