More than 80% of carers believe that caring has harmed their own health, according to the Princess Royal Trust for Carers. Taking a break is vital to help carers to manage the impact that caring has on their lives.
Getting help
Family and friends are often the first people carers turn to when they need help. Catching up with familiar faces for a couple of hours or having a night out can be a big relief. However, the support that friends and family can offer may be limited in both quality and quantity, so it’s important to consider other sources of help.
The Princess Royal Trust for Carers suggests a number of ways to get a break (known as respite). These include:
- Residential respite, where the person you care for goes away to be looked after by someone else for a while, either in residential or nursing care, or on a holiday.
- Domiciliary care, where someone comes into your home and takes over care for a while (a few hours or sometimes overnight) so you can go out or have some time to yourself.
- You can sometimes get a break when the person you care for is involved in other activities, for example, at school or at a day centre, or going out with the help of a support worker.
Your local authority and GP are the best places to start when looking for respite as they often offer support services for carers. Services arranged through the NHS are free.
You can find out about the services offered by your local authority and apply for an assessment for help with short-term care or a respite break using the Directgov link in External links. An assessment will consider the needs of the person you care for, your needs as their carer and the services that may be provided. A financial assessment may also be carried out, as some services may be charged for.
Short-term care and breaks
Short-term care can mean anything from a day or night-sitting service to a short-term stay in a home. It could be a chance for the person you care for to go out with others, allowing you to have a little time at home for yourself.
Your local authority may also be able to provide you with vouchers for short-term breaks. This allows you to choose where and when to have a break. However, these schemes are not available everywhere, so it’s best to check with your local social services.
Another method is direct payments, where the local authority calculates what services it thinks you need, and then gives you the money to buy the service directly, rather than arranging it for you. This could, for example, allow you to employ a carer while you take a break.
The Crossroads website can also help you find local services. Crossroads has 140 schemes throughout England and Wales providing care to over 35,000 carers (see External links).
Crossroads charges for some services, but you may be able to access these for free if you have a carer's assessment or if the person you care for has a community care assessment. See Assessments (in NHS Choices links, right) for more information on getting an assessment from your local authority.
A spokesperson said: "Crossroads gives carers a break from their caring responsibilities. Our aim is to provide a flexible and reliable service, tailored to meet the individual needs of each carer and the person they care for. Every scheme offers practical support when and where it is most needed, mostly in the home.
"A trained carer support worker will take over from the carer to give them time to themself. They can use this time as they wish: to see friends, keep appointments, have a hobby or just to get some sleep."
Taking a holiday
We all need a break and planning a holiday gives us something to look forward to. If you choose to go on holiday without the person you're caring for, local social services should be able to help you make arrangements to cover costs for additional care in the home, extra visits to daycare centres or residential care while you're away.
If you want to go away with the person you care for, you will need to find accommodation to suit their needs. There are specialist organisations that can help you find accommodation that is suitable for disabled people. Tourism for All has specialist information about accessible places to stay and advice for travellers with special mobility needs.
The Break website provides information on supported holidays, short breaks, respite care and daycare support. Vitalise provides an alternative to traditional respite care by offering breaks in a relaxed, holiday environment but with nursing care and personal support available. See External links for details.
You can also arrange a break yourself. However, it's still a good idea to ensure that the person you care for has a community care assessment. Even if they're paying for the complete cost of care themselves, an assessment will help you clarify the type of care they need and you may find you're entitled to some financial help.
Watch the video below to see how one carer coped with full-time caring.
