Assessing a carer's support needs

A carers assessment will look at:

• Your needs for support
• The practical and emotional sustainability of your caring role
• Your willingness and ability to continue to provide support

It must also look at:

• The impact of your support needs on your own health and well-being
• Caring responsibilities you may have for a child or children or any other person you may provide care for
• Ability to work, access education or training, or engage in recreational activities
• What you would like to achieve in your daily life
• If support could help you achieve these outcomes
• Whether your support network and the wider community can contribute towards meeting the outcomes you want to achieve
• Whether you or the person you are caring for would benefit from preventative support or information and advice

The carers assessment will also determine whether you have eligible needs under the National Eligibility Criteria. If it is determined that you have eligible needs as a carer due to your caring role, you are entitled to ask the council to support you to meet those needs. If you do not have eligible needs, you will still be provided with information, advice and guidance on how your needs may be supported. Please see our factsheet to find out more about the Carers Eligibility Criteria.

A carers assessment will be offered to any carer that appears to need support as a result of providing care to another adult or child. You do not have to be living with the person you care for or be caring full time.

Note: Anyone providing care through a paid contract, including direct payments or voluntary work, may not be classed as a carer in this situation, unless they are providing additional care outside of the paid contract.

The Care Act states that a carers’ assessment should be 'appropriate and proportionate to the needs of the carer'.

As a carer you are entitled to a carers assessment:

• Regardless of the amount/type of care you provide, your financial means or your level of needs for support
• Even if the person you care for has had an assessment of their needs from social care services, or if they have been assessed as not being eligible for support

Your carers assessment will be completed by the council, either by an allocated worker from the Carers Hub and Wellbeing Service or if the person you are looking after already has an allocated worker from an adult social care team (i.e. Dudley Disability Service or Living Independently Team), they will be able to complete the carers assessment if you wish. If you are not sure or have any questions please contact the Carers Hub and speak to an advisor.

Alternatively, you can complete an online carers self-assessment via our adult social care portal.

Once submitted this will be forwarded to the Carers Hub and Wellbeing Service who will contact you to discuss your caring role. If you are identified as having eligible needs under the national carers criteria you will be allocated a worker who arrange to meet with you to develop a support plan and look at how your needs may be supported. For further information about a carers assessment and the national carers eligibility criteria for visit www.dudley.gov.uk/carers

Give yourself some time to think about how caring affects you. You should also think about what help would make a difference to you as a carer, in continuing in your caring role. It is helpful to write some notes for yourself, or talk to family or friends to help you think about your needs. A fact sheet on preparing for you carers assessment is available below

The Care Act 2014, states that any assessments should be carried out:

• Appropriately and proportionately to your needs and circumstances
• Effectively to allow you to participate in the assessment

You can decide if you would like the assessment to be face to face or over the telephone.  

1. Face to face assessment - should be in a convenient and private place for you, this may be at your home or at one of our council offices.

2. Telephone assessment - should only take place if you are happy to do this. If you think you may have difficulty expressing your needs or you have communication difficulties, a telephone assessment may not be appropriate.

3. MS Teams assessment - should only take place if you are happy to do this. If you think you may have difficulty expressing your needs or you have communication difficulties, an MS Teams assessment may not be appropriate.

4.Online Carers Self-Assessment - this can be accessed through the Dudley Adults Portal. 

You will be provided with an independent advocate to assist you in your assessment if without support you would have ‘substantial difficulty’ in communicating your wishes, or understanding, retaining and assessing information during the assessment and there is no appropriate person who is able and willing to help you.

If you are currently caring or expect to become a carer in the future and feel you may have needs as result of providing this care you can contact Dudley Carers Hub.

If you or the person you care for has a named social worker you can contact them to request a carers needs assessment.

I've never had a carers assessment

If you have never had a carers assessment within the Dudley borough, an advisor from the Carers Hub can speak to you about your caring situation. This will give you the opportunity to discuss what support you are looking for; what care you are providing to the cared for person and the impact your caring role is having on your day to day life.

The advisor will provide you with information and advice on support available and may refer you to relevant services which can support you and the person you care for.  If you feel that your needs can be met through the provision of this information and advice; referral to preventative services and/or carer support groups, you may not require carers assessment.

However, if you feel your caring role is, or is likely to have an impact on your physical and mental health and/or your daily life, you are entitled to have a carers assessment, this will be offered to you by the advisor.

I've previously had a carers assessment

If you have previously had a carers assessment and you feel you require further support as your caring role is, or is likely to have an impact on your physical and mental health and/or your daily life, you are entitled to have a carers review and/or carers reassessment.

If you and the person you care for agree, an assessment of both your needs can be undertaken at the same time.