Tag Archives: carers

Mum fuming after bus driver leaves disabled daughter out in cold

December 10, 2012   Carers, Downs syndrome

A pensioner with a disabled daughter is furious after a bus driver left them out in the cold to give priority to mums with pushchairs.

Tammy Chapman and mum Janet, who is not happy with the way they were treated by a park-and-ride bus driver

Janet Chapman, 61, was with her daughter Tammy, 23, who has Down’s syndrome and was in a wheelchair, at Babraham Road park and ride in Cambridge.

But when they tried to get on a bus, the space designated for disabled people was taken up with pushchairs. When she and her other daughter Jamie, 24, asked the Stagecoach driver if he could move them along or get the mums to fold the buggies, he refused.

Mrs Chapman, of Huntingdon Road, Sawston, has now received an apology from Stagecoach bosses but is not satisfied with the response and accused the other mums of selfishness.

She said: “I got to the bus with my two daughters in good time to go to a dentist’s appointment. The bus was full and the space for wheelchairs was taken up by mums with pushchairs despite it categorically stating on the sign it was for disabled passengers.

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

Preventative care for elderly under threat, survey suggests

December 10, 2012   Carers, Older care, ukcuts

Services have been cut or frozen by two-thirds of local councils since coalition came to power, according to ComRes study

Cuts

Three-quarters of councillors who had had their budget reduced say the cuts mean that elderly and vulnerable local residents are now at greater risk. Photograph: John Stillwell/PA

Personal care services that help elderly people remain living in their own homes have been cut or frozen by two-thirds of local councils since the coalition came to power, a survey shows.

When 435 local councillors in England were asked about social care provision in their area, 64% said their council had reduced or kept funding the same since May 2010 for preventative care and those classed as having low-level needs .

A third (151) had seen their local budget cut, with reductions averaging 16%. Among those councillors, 76% said the cuts meant that elderly and vulnerable local residents were now at greater risk, while the same number admitted they were worried about the welfare of such people. And 69% said people in need would now not receive the help and support they needed.

Read More