Free guides to help you through the care maze
11/04/2008
A completely updated set of 48 factsheets about issues affecting older people, their families and carers have been published by Counsel and Care, the national charity for older people, their families and carers.
The factsheets are an indispensable guide for anyone who needs to access care and support, or wants to find out more about their benefits and entitlements if they are over 60. Counsel and Care’s advice service is also targeted towards the families and carers of people over 60, as these are often the people involved in ensuring their older relatives receive the care and support they are entitled to.
Stephen Burke, Chief Executive of Counsel and Care said: “These factsheets are an excellent introduction for people who want to find out more, yet they are detailed enough to be really useful when applied to a real-life situation.
“With the moves towards individuals arranging and brokering their own care services, rather than receiving traditional support from a social worker, it is crucial that people have access to accurate information so that they know what their options are. These factsheets can guide people through the system so that they achieve the best care and support possible.”
Counsel and Care’s 48 comprehensive factsheets cover a huge range of issues which affect older people – for example, accessing care and support in your local area, going into and returning home from hospital, adapting and maintaining a property, finding and paying for a care home place, paid employment, and the benefits, allowances and grants available to older people.
To download the factsheets, drop onto the link below.
The full list of factsheets is:
Abuse – older people at risk
(Independent) advocacy
Assessment and services from your local council in England
Bereavement – the emotional impact
Care Home Fees: paying them in England
Care Home Fees: third party top-ups in England
Care Homes: what to look for
Carers: what support is available
Community Care: understanding the system
Complaints about community care and NHS services in England
Continuing Healthcare: should the NHS be paying for your care?
Council Tax Benefit and Housing Benefit
Disability benefits: Attendance Allowance and Disability Living Allowance
Extra care housing
Funeral planning
Grants and loans from the state for people on a low income (the Social Fund)
Grants from charities for people on a low income
Health difficulties caused by hot and cold weather
Health Difficulties: how to cope with changing needs
Help at Home: what may be available in your local area
Home Care agencies: what to look for
Home Care: using Direct Payments
Hospital discharge in England
Hospitals: what to expect
Housing: adapting your home to stay independent
Housing decisions and options in later life
Housing: how to pay for the maintenance of your home
Information: other useful organisations
Memory loss, depression, ‘confusion’ and dementia
Money and welfare: managing my affairs if I become ill
Moving to and returning from abroad: benefits and services
Organ donation and transplants
Older people in paid employment
Pension Credit
Practical information for coping with a death
Terminal illness – caring and coping
War Pensions
Will writing and leaving a legacy
Assessment and services from your local council in Scotland
Hospital discharge in Scotland
Care home fees: paying them in Scotland
Care home fees: third party top-ups in Scotland
Complaints about community care and NHS services in Scotland
Assessment and services from your local council in Wales
Hospital discharge in Wales
Care home fees: paying them in Wales
Care home fees: third party top-ups in Wales
Complaints about community care and NHS services in Wales