Author Archives: Maureen

Ed Miliband: Carers must be able to speak English

December 14, 2012   Carers

Ed Miliband: Carers must be able to speak English

14 December 2012

Ed Miliband toughened Labour’s approach to immigration today by saying that key public sector staff like carers must be able to speak English.

New rules for the public sector would insist that anyone seeking a job dealing with customers would have to speak the national language first.

“Many people being paid the lowest wages do a fantastic job working as care workers,” he said. “But older people of different backgrounds often say that the limited English skills of some care workers present them with difficulties.”

Read More

Census 2011: 2.1m unpaid carers devote over 20 hours a week to looking after loved ones

December 12, 2012   Carers, Older care

Census 2011: 2.1m unpaid carers devote over 20 hours a week to looking after loved ones

The burden on unpaid carers has increased significantly over the past decade, with nearly half a million extra people devoting more than 20 hours a week to looking after family and friends.

 

One in ten people in England and Wales is an unpaid carer, the census shows

5:27PM GMT 11 Dec 2012

One in ten residents of England and Wales – a total of 5.8 million people – devotes at least part of their week to caring for disabled, sick or elderly relatives and loved ones without any expectation of payment.

This is an 11 per cent rise from the 5.2 million unpaid carers recorded in the 2001 census, and comes amid a growing crisis about how elderly social care will be funded in the future as the population continues to get older.

The greatest increase was among those providing over 20 hours a week of care, with the number rising from 1.66 million a decade ago to 2.1 million in 2011.

Read More

For many unpaid family Carers Christmas will just be another day.

December 10, 2012   Carers, disability, mental health, Multiple Sclerosis, Older care, stroke

For many unpaid family Carers Christmas will just be another day.

Guest blog by Maureen

For many unpaid family Carers Christmas will be no different to any other day of the year, the loved ones they care for still have to be cared for 24/7, their disability or illness doesn’t go away just because it’s Christmas, quite often Carers have found that friends and family no longer visit or even enquire how they or their caree are which leaves them feeling shut off from the outside world, what many people don’t realise is anyone, and I mean anyone can become a carer in an instant, you don’t chose to become an unpaid carer, it just happens without warning and in some cases without realising you are a carer.
Christmas is no fun either for the person being cared for, they to feel cut off as well while the outside world is having Christmas.
Christmas is another time when outside help is not always available and everywhere is closed putting more and more pressure on the unpaid carer at this time of year.
Chill4us forum is a lifeline to many unpaid carers, it may not be person to person but knowing someone is out there can ease a little of the loneliness and isolation and Chill4us is open all over Christmas, New year and the rest of the year.
Below are some comments how some family carers feel at this time of year……..
Read More