The right to a Carer’s Assessment (English Edition)

Carers in the UK have the right to a Carer’s Assessment and have their needs met. This study explored the experiences of carers of people with learning disabilities who have had their needs assessed and have received services to determine whether the services met their needs. The study adopted a qualitative approach with face-to-face interviews. Purposive sampling was used to recruit the participants from those who attend a Carers’ Centre in North London. The findings indicate that most participants used the leisure activities provided by the Carers’ Centre but their many roles impeded accessing other services. Participants were interested in personal development but often put their lives on hold because of their caring role. They coped through care sharing and positive religiosity. Coping strategies were not discussed during the Carers’ Assessment. Finally, participants expressed worry with learning disability community access in independent living, employment, challenging behavior, service cuts and respite. An important finding is that participants want a redefinition of the word ‘carer’ to incorporate the many dimensions of their lives; and that many participants never heard from practitioners after the Carers’ Assessment. The findings also revealed that generic services offered by policy do not meet carers' needs and that care plans do not seem to effectively help services to deal with issues from learning disabilities without calling the carers from their short breaks, highlighting the importance of true inclusive partnership with carers. The implications of these results on practice and on the new Care Act 2014 are discussed.