Carer Assessments
At Carers Support we provide Carer Assessments on behalf of West Sussex County Council. A Carer Assessment carried out by Carers Support West Sussex is for adults caring for another adult.
Carer Assessments
A Carer Assessment aims to explore your needs as a carer to ensure you receive the appropriate assistance and resources for your vital role, and determines what help and support can be provided to you, which may include access to services provided by Carers Support West Sussex or services offered by the Council, as well as information about other support which could benefit you or your family.
Important Information
If you’re over 18 and provide regular unpaid care for someone, you’re entitled to a Carer Assessment. It doesn’t matter how much or what sort of care you provide.
The Local Authority for the County in which the person requiring care resides is responsible for providing a Carer Assessment. If the person you care for does not live in West Sussex, you should contact the Local Authority in the County they live in to request an assessment.
A Carer Assessment is different from a Care Need’s Assessment, which is for the person you are caring for, and you are entitled to a Carer Assessment whether or not the person you care for has had an assessment themselves.
It’s important to remember that the aim of the Carer Assessment is to help you get the support that you need, so it’s best to be honest about your caring role, the type of care you provide, and most importantly how you feel about being a carer.
You do not have to have a Carer Assessment to be registered with, or access support from Carers Support West Sussex (with the exception of some funded support).
What to Expect
A Carer Assessment usually takes place over the phone, but we can arrange an online call or meet face-to-face, if you are unable to have the conversation by phone.
A Carer Assessment records the impact of caring on your physical, emotional, and mental well-being, and identify the services and support that could benefit you as a carer. It is also an opportunity to discuss your willingness and ability to continue providing care.
The things you can expect to discuss within your carers assessment are:
- Your caring role and how it affects your life.
- How you feel about caring and the options you have.
- Your health and wellbeing. This includes physical, mental, and emotional wellbeing.
- Relationships, your social life, and recreation
- Employment, training, studying, and volunteering
- Planning for emergencies
How to request a Carers Assessment
- Carers Support West Sussex carry out Carer Assessments for West Sussex County Council so contact us if you would like one, and one of our team will get back to you.
- If the person you care for has an allocated WSCC Social Care professional (for example a Social Worker), you could ask them to refer you.
- Alternatively you could fill in a self-assessment form, which will be sent directly to the Carer Assessment Team at Carers Support West Sussex.
Carer Well-being Review
A Carer Well-being Review is a type of assessment completed by Carers Support, and so in order to do this you will need to register with us if you are not already.
A carers wellbeing review will enable you to discuss your caring role with a Well-being Worker and come up with some manageable steps you can take to help yourself, as well as getting some advice regarding services that are available to you.
You will be asked some questions about your caring role, but a Carer Well-being Review is led by you and is an opportunity for you to talk to someone about your concerns.
How can we best help you?
