Support Over Your Lifetime

Support in your own home, a care home and a nursing home

As the NHS suggests to the question “What is social care and support?”
“They’re services to help you if you:

  • need practical support because of illness or disability
  • care for someone receiving social care and support

Social care and support are usually paid for by:

  • people who need services and their families
  • by the local council’s social services department”
    “Introduction to care and support – What is social care and support?” The NHS website. Retrieved 15th September 2022

Understanding social care and support

There is general information on social care and support:

OVERVIEW OF SOCIAL CARE

From the NHS

A substantial guide worth briefly looking at if you or someone you know needs help with day-to-day living because of illness or disability. This explains your options and where you can get support. Social care and support guide – NHS

This includes

From Buckinghamshire Council
Care advice in Buckinghamshire Care Advice Buckinghamshire | Care Advice Buckinghamshire

From Age Space
Age Space is a national organisation whose information is written from the perspective of a carer for elderly parents and as such has some helpful insights. It provides links and information on some of the local services and some local groups relating to elderly care.

LOCAL SUPPORT - SELF REFERRAL

From Buckinghamshire Council
Provide a broad section on care and local support from the council
Care Advice Buckinghamshire: “Support and care for adults, their families and carers. Helping you find the right information and support in Buckinghamshire.” Care Advice Buckinghamshire | Care Advice Buckinghamshire

two clear options

Options are complex but can be simplified into two clear options:
Option 1: making changes that do not require a social care assessment
Option 2: making changes following a social care assessment (a free assessment)

Many people will choose option 2 and some will choose option 1 and some will do option 1 while they wait for option 2. The information in this section has been divided into these 2 options and then other important areas of information have been included which can relate to either option.

OPTION 1: MAKING CHANGES WITHOUT A FREE SOCIAL CARE ASSESSMENT

Option 1 includes adjustments to your home and equipment to provide practical support. Some of this is free and some you would need to pay for. You can self-refer for an occupational therapy assessment.

SELF-REFER FOR AN OCCUPATIONAL THERAPY ASSESSMENT

From Buckinghamshire Council: self-referral for an occupational therapy assessment

INFORMATION ON LIVING INDEPENDENTLY

Also read topic on “Care in your own home” for other relevant information

From Buckinghamshire Council – General
Support you to live independently Supporting you to live independently | Care Advice Buckinghamshire

From Buckinghamshire Council – Adaptations

From the NHS 

OPTION 2: MAKING CHANGES FOLLOWING A SOCIAL CARE NEEDS ASSESSMENT

A FREE social care needs assessment can help you better understand what your social care needs are and also what your options are supporting those needs.

Some assessments are completed by other services including by hospital teams and by secondary care mental health services, without you needing to request.

self referral for a SOCIAL CARE NEEDS assessment

From Buckinghamshire Council
Ask adult social care for help – SELF REFERRAL for social care needs assessment Ask adult social care for help | Care Advice Buckinghamshire

  • If you want to make a referral for yourself or on behalf of someone else
  • If you want to make a carer referral for yourself or someone else
  • If you want to find out how much money you might need to contribute towards your care
  • You can submit a general enquiry

Explanation of a care needs assessment

From the NHS

From Buckinghamshire Council

Age UK provide a good explanation of how a care needs assessment is the first step if you think you need social care
How do I get social care, whether home adaptions or a care home? How do I get a care needs assessment from my local council? The Care Needs Assessment Explained | Age UK

Home Care service providers

From the Care Quality Commission (CQC) – home care service reports and ratings
CQC provide reports on home care services in England and these can be found here. You can search for home care services near your home or in any area.
Find services offering care in the home Find services offering care in the home – Care Quality Commission

From the Buckinghamshire Care Services Directory
For information on care providers in Buckinghamshire and Milton Keynes, read the Buckinghamshire Care and Support Services Directory Buckinghamshire Care Services Directory | Publications | Care Choices

From the NHS

HOME HELP

As the NHS suggest
Home help is slightly different to homecare and means day-to-day domestic tasks that you may need a helping hand with ( see “home help” topic)  Help at home from a paid carer – Social care and support guide – NHS

From Age UK

From Age UK (Buckinghamshire)

From the Royal Voluntary Service
Supporting people Help Supporting People | Home Support | Royal Voluntary Service

Transport and mobility – includes bLUE BADGE for parking

From Buckinghamshire Council

From the NHS 

WHEELCHAIR support

From Buckinghamshire Healthcare NHS Trust
Wheelchair service Wheelchair Service – Buckinghamshire Healthcare NHS Trust

From British Red Cross

SUPPORT ON LINKING TO COMMUNITY SERVICES

From Prevention Matters
Advice linking eligible adults to social activities, volunteers and community services. How can I refer myself to them? Prevention Matters | Care Advice Buckinghamshire

SUPPORT AFTER A STAY IN HOSPITAL

From the NHS
Care after a hospital stay – Includes hospital discharge and care and support afterwards Care after a hospital stay – Social care and support guide – NHS

From the Red Cross Home from Hospital Service
The service includes: rebuilding confidence, collecting prescriptions, offering companionship and assistance with shopping. This service is free and available to anyone living locally.

CARE HOME providers

From the Care Quality Commission (CQC) – care home reports and ratings
CQC provide reports on all care homes in England and these can be found here. You can search for care homes near your home or in any area you choose.
Find a care home | Care Quality Commission

From the Buckinghamshire Care Services Directory
For information on care homes in Buckinghamshire and Milton Keynes, read the Buckinghamshire Care and Support Services Directory Buckinghamshire Care Services Directory | Publications | Care Choices

From the NHS
Care homes Care homes – NHS

information on other ALTERNATIVES TO YOUR OWN HOME FOR CARE

From the NHS

From Buckinghamshire Council
Living with support Living with support | Care Advice Buckinghamshire

ADVOCACY SUPPORT

As the NHS suggest
“If you find it difficult to understand your care and support or find it hard to speak up, there are people who can act as a spokesperson for you.”
Someone to speak up for you (advocate) Someone to speak up for you (advocate) – Social care and support guide – NHS

From Buckinghamshire Council
You can self-refer to POhWER directly

From POhWER

  • Delivers information, advice, support and advocacy services throughout England. Aiming to support people who face difficult issues and want to make their voice heard. They offer the following services in Buckinghamshire Buckinghamshire | Home | POhWER
    you can self-refer in Buckinghamshire if you consider this helpful

INDEPENDENT BROKERAGE SERVICE

From Buckinghamshire Council
“Brokers can remove the stress of sourcing and planning your own care: There is currently a fee for this service though there is currently no charge for a broker to find respite or a permanent residential / nursing placement” Independent brokerage service | Care Advice Buckinghamshire

mental capacity support

From the NHS
Making decisions for someone else

From Gov UK
Make decisions on behalf of somone Make decisions on behalf of someone: Checking mental capacity – GOV.UK

Getting local support

From Buckinghamshire Council
You can also get advocacy from POhWER. An advocate has been specially trained to support people who are not able to make certain decisions.
How can advocacy help me? How can advocacy help me? | Care Advice Buckinghamshire

From POhWER

Further information

Information on lasting power of attorney can be found under

Any changes can be stressful for all of us, including those associated with changes relating to social care and support. For all of us even without any stress an attention to wellbeing can be helpful.

There is local support for wellbeing, see under

If you find you are developing persistent anxiety or low mood then there is local support

Financial support

one to one support including helplines

There is information on finances and direct local and national support including helplines, see under

paying for care

Below there is information on finances relating to social care:

 

FINANCIAL INFORMATION

From the NHS

From the NHS – Large guide
How to pay for care and support, and where you can get help with costs Money, work, benefits and social care – Social care and support guide – NHS

From the NHS – after a hospital stay
Care after a hospital stay – Includes hospital discharge and care and support afterwards Care after a hospital stay – NHS

From Age UK

From Buckinghamshire Council
Provide a large database which explains different aspects of paying for care including local support.
Paying for care Paying for care | Care Advice Buckinghamshire

NHS Continuing Healthcare

As Beacon suggest
“Continuing Healthcare – officially called NHS Continuing Healthcare – is a fully-funded package of care that some people are entitled to receive as a result of disability, accident or illness. It covers the full cost of the person’s care and residential accommodation. NHS Continuing Healthcare funding is available to adults living in England who have particularly intense, complex or unpredictable care needs. Unlike local authority funding, it is not means tested.”
Beacon CHC | What is NHS Continuing Healthcare? – Beacon CHC

From Beacon
This excellent website provided by a social enterprise, explains NHS continuing healthcare in full, including how you can challenge a decision and a helpline.

support for all ages

From Buckinghamshire Council
Ask adult social care for help Ask adult social care for help | Care Advice Buckinghamshire
Includes how you can find out how much money you might need to contribute towards your care

Support for over 60s

From Buckinghamshire Age UK
For over 60s information and advice about benefit entitlement, with local helpline welfare benefits

Carer benefits

For information on support and financial benefits for carers, see under

MONEY OFF YOUR COUNCIL TAX

From Buckinghamshire Council
Money off your Council Tax  See how to get money off your Council Tax bill | Buckinghamshire Council

Support for carers

Carers

A carer is anyone, who looks after a family member, partner or friend who needs help because of their illness, such as frailty, or a disability. The care they give is unpaid. For anyone who is a carer, recognising your role as a carer is important because it can allow you to be connected to the local and national support available, that this key role deserves. See under

NATIONAL SUPPORT - SELF REFERRAL

GENERAL

From Age UK
Age UK advice line Age UK Advice Line: Free national helpline for older people | Age UK

From the NHS
Various telephone helplines and forums from national organisations covering different aspects of social care : including older people, money and benefits, if you care for someone else and if you care for a child Social care helplines and forums – NHS

Planning for the future

The future

Having a long term medical condition leads many older patients to consider planning for the future decades before death with

Understanding end of life care allows long term planning for the future and discussions with family, ensuring it is known what a person might want.

Other Local support

Adult SOCIAL CARE TEAMs

For local adult social care teams, including emergencies, see to “Social care” under

The NHS explain what abuse and neglect of adults at risk means
Abuse and neglect of adults at risk (safeguarding) – Social care and support guide – NHS

Reporting a SAFEGUARDING concern

To report a concern about abuse or neglect of an adult, see under

To report a concern about abuse or neglect of a child, see under

NHS 111

If you think you need medical help right now, 111 online can tell you what to do next.

Campaigns

"Pump it up" - know your blood pressure.

Covid-19

Information on Covid-19 including symptoms, testing and vaccination.

CAMPAIGNS

Show your heart some love, women of Bucks!

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