Carer’s legal rights:
Dispelling the myths
Activity six powerpoint
Information correct as of May 2012
Statement one
“Close family members have to
provide care to a member of their
family if they need it.”
TRUE
FALSE
Everyone has the right
to choose whether to
care or not. There is no
legal obligation to care
for a close family
member.
Statement two
“All carers have the right to have
their views taken into account
when social services is carrying
out a community care assessment
of the cared for person.”
TRUE
FALSE
FALSE
Social services must
consult with carers
when undertaking a
community care
assessment and take
account of both the
disabled person and
the carer’s wishes and
preferences.
Statement legislation
and guidance
Policy guidance to the NHS and Community Care Act 1990
Community Care in the Next Decade and Beyond
Quotations:
“preferences of carers
should be taken into account
and their willingness to
continue caring should not
be assumed.”
“care plan should be the
result of a constructive
dialogue between service
users, carer, social services
staff and those of any other
agency involved.”
Statement three
“Carers who provide a
substantial amount of care
on a regular basis have
additional rights to a
‘carer’s assessment’.”
TRUE
FALSE
FALSE
Carers who provide
‘regular and
substantial’ care are
eligible for their own
assessment carried
out by the social
services
department.
Supporting legislation
and guidance
The Carers (Recognition and Services) Act 1995: applies
to all carers of all ages and was the first piece of legislation
to consider carers in their own right.
Requires the social services department to assess a carer’s
ability to care, if they provide substantial and regular care,
at the time of the cared for person’s assessment.
Statement four
“Carers only have the right to an
assessment of their own needs at
the time at which the service
user’s assessment is being
undertaken.”
TRUE
FALSE
FALSE
Carers over the age
of 16 have the right to
their own separate
assessment at a time
to suit them. It does
not depend on the
cared for person
agreeing to a
community care
assessment.
Supporting legislation
and guidance
Carers and Disabled Children’s Act 2000 applies to all
carers over 16 caring for an adult. It enables carers to
access an assessment in their own right separate from the
cared for person.
Practice guidance under the
Carers and Disabled Childrens
Act 2000 quotation:
“offer an opportunity for a
private discussion in which
carers can candidly express
their views.”
Statement five
“Carers should be informed of
their right to an assessment.”
TRUE
FALSE
FALSE
The social services
department has to
inform the carer of
their rights to an
assessment and the
services that are
available to support
them so that the
carer can request an
assessment.
Supporting legislation
and guidance
The Carers (Equal Opportunities) Act 2004, Section 1 :
states the LA must inform carers of their rights to an
assessment.
Community Care Directions 2004: states social services
must provide up to date information in accessible formats on
services and entitlements, including the right to an
assessment.
Statement six
“Prioritising Need in the Context
of Putting People First (guidance
on eligibility criteria for social
care) 2010 only relates to
services users and not carers.”
TRUE
FALSE
FALSE
There is considerable
misunderstanding around
the position of Carers in
relation to eligibility
criteria guidance as given
in Prioritising Need in the
Context of Putting People
First. Eligibility criteria
relates not only to cared
for person but also to
Carers. It is therefore
policy guidance to
address Carers eligible
needs under this
guidance.
Supporting legislation
and guidance
Practice guidance under the 2000 Carer and
Disabled Children Act:
Requires social services to grade the extent of the risk
to the sustainability of the caring role into one of the
four risk bandings. If categorised as critical social
services must take steps to ensure support is available.
Statement seven
“As carers are not paid council
employees, the local authority do
not have any legal responsibility
to ensure the carer is kept safe
from injury when carrying out their
caring role.”
TRUE
FALSE
FALSE
Although carers are
not employees for
the purposes of
health and safety
legislation, the
authority
nevertheless owes a
duty of care to
carers.
Statement eight
“Carers should always be
informed that they have the
right to a face to face
assessment separate from the
cared for person.”
TRUE
FALSE
FALSE
Although self
assessment forms
are a useful element
of self directed
support, the carer
should always have
the opportunity for a
face to face
discussion, separate
from the cared for
person.
Supporting legislation
and guidance
Practice guidance to the Carers and
Disabled Childrens Act 2000:
“self assessment forms can help (social services)
prepare for assessment…best practice suggests that
they cannot replace face-to-face assessment.”
Statement nine
“Carers have the right to be
supported to stay in work, or to
return to work, if this is what
they want to do.”
TRUE
FALSE
FALSE
Even if the carer is
not actively seeking
to go back to work or
take up a new
interest, social
services must
actively encourage
consideration of
these areas as part of
the carers
assessment.
Supporting legislation
and guidance
• The Carers Equal Opportunities Act 2004: Section
2 of the act places a duty on social services to
ensure that work, life long learning and leisure are
considered when the carer is assessed.
• Employment Rights Act 1996: Carers have limited
rights to take unpaid leave to care for a dependent.
• Work and Families Act 2006: Introduced flexible
working rights.
Statement ten
“A carer’s service is anything
which helps the carer to care,
including personal care for the
service user to enable the
carer to have a break.”
TRUE
FALSE
FALSE
A carer’s service
does not include
any intimate
personal care to the
person for whom
they are caring.
Supporting legislation
and guidance
• Section 2 Carers and Disabled Children’s Act 2000:
enables Social Services to provide carers with their own
services following an assessment.
• Policy guidance under the Carers Act 2000 and
combined policy guidance 2000 & 2004 Acts: gives
examples of carers services such as trips, driving lessons,
travel assistance, training, laundry, gardening, housework,
mobile phone, short holiday, computer, car costs.
Statement eleven
“The NHS have a legal duty to
co-operate with local authorities
to work constructively together
to support carers.”
TRUE
FALSE
FALSE
Although there is no
obligation upon the
NHS to address the
support the needs
of carers, the NHS
must consider all
requests from the
local authority to
support carers.
Supporting legislation
and guidance
• NHS Act 2006: requires NHS and local authorities to
‘co-operate with one another in order to secure and
advance the health and welfare of people’.
• Carer (Equal Opportunities) Act 2004: NHS must give
‘due consideration’ to local authority requests to assist
in planning provision to carers and requests for a
service eg. moving/handling training.
Statement twelve
“Carers can ask to be
registered as a carer at their
local GP Practice..”
TRUE
FALSE
FALSE
Primary care
providers have been
asked to keep an up
to date register of
all carers in their
practice.
Supporting legislation
and guidance
• Modernising Health and Social Services White
Paper 1998: required primary care providers to identify
carers and provide support to maintain their health.
• National Carers Strategy 2008: committed £150
million in period up to 2011 to enable PCTs to provide
emergency and planned respite breaks for carers.
Statement thirteen
“A patient cannot remain in a
hospital bed once they are
medically fit to go home, even if
the carer is unwilling or unable to
provide care.”
TRUE
FALSE
FALSE
A patient needs to be
‘safe for discharge’ in
order to return home.
Carers cannot be
compelled to provide
care upon discharge,
therefore alternative
care may need to be
arranged to facilitate
a ‘safe’ discharge.
Supporting legislation
and guidance
Discharge from hospital: pathway, process and practice 2003:
provides key general guidance and states that:
“the engagement and active participation of individuals and
their carers as partners is central to the delivery of care and in
planning of successful discharge”
Community Care (Delayed Discharge etc) Act 2003:
emphasises importance of social services assessing the carers
needs when undertaking a community care assessment.
Statement fourteen
“Disabled parents have the right to
adequate services to help them
undertake their parenting role and to
ensure their children do not take on
unreasonable caring responsibilities.”
TRUE
FALSE
FALSE
When carrying out a
community care
assessment it is
important to address
the whole family
circumstances.
Young carers should
not be expected to
carry out
‘inappropriate’ levels
of caring.
Supporting legislation
and guidance
• Carers Recognition & Services Act 1995 and Carers
(Equal Opportunities) Act 2004: both apply to all
carers regardless of age.
• Children Act 1989: young carers are often entitled to
their own services as a ‘child in need’.
• National Framework for Children in Need & their
Families: also considers needs of young carers.
Statement fifteen
“Carers have the right to be
supported in their own right,
rather than just as an unpaid
providers of care for disabled
people.”
TRUE
FALSE
FALSE
In the last few years,
there has been a
cultural shift in the
way carers have
been viewed. Carers
should be seen as
individuals who
have the right to be
socially included
and offered the life
chances which
others enjoy.
Supporting legislation
and guidance
• Carers (Equal Opportunities) Act 2004:
recognised that carers have the right to work,
education/training and leisure opportunities.
• Coleman v Law judgement
• Equality Act 2010: requires public bodies to
assess their policies to see if they have an adverse
effect on carers.
Statement sixteen
“Carers can make decisions on
behalf of those that they care for”
TRUE
FALSE
Carers cannot make
major decisions on
behalf of the person
they care for unless
the person lacks
capacity under The
Mental Capacity Act.
The carer can only
make decisions if
they have Power of
Attorney.
Supporting legislation
and guidance
• The Mental Capacity Act, 2005 ; defines ‘capacity’
and ‘best interests’ as well as decision making
processes that must be followed.
• The Mental Capacity Act, Code of Practice, 2005 ;
all staff in health and social care should be aware of
and working to this code of practice in terms of
important decision making.