Statutory Carer Assessments

If you care for an adult in Birmingham and caring has a major impact on you, you can talk to Birmingham Carers Hub about the help and support you may need across all aspects of your life, including your work. This is called a Statutory Carer’s Assessment and you have a legal right to request this. Birmingham Carers Hub undertakes this on behalf of Birmingham City Council. You can request a Carer’s Assessment even if the adult you care for is unwilling to accept help for themselves or you don’t receive Carer’s Allowance, it does not affect any benefits that you may currently receive.  

To work out what support would be most helpful, we need to consider:

• What help the person you care for needs
• What help you are providing or you intend to provide (for example, when the person you care for is discharged from hospital)
• What help you require to maintain your caring role
• What help Birmingham Carers Hub and other organisations may provide including Birmingham City Council
• Your wish to work, undertake training/education or leisure activities.

As part of your Carer’s Assessment, we will encourage you to think about:

• The strengths and resources you have and how these can be best used
• What changes could be made and what would help improve your wellbeing
• How a Wellbeing Payment could make a real difference and what other support is needed.
• You should also be able to contribute to the discussion of the needs of the person you care for so your needs are taken into account when planning services or options for them.

This is an in-depth conversation to establish what support you will need so please allow approximately two hours for your appointment.

If the person you care for is not receiving any care services, they may benefit from having their own assessment. You can arrange this by contacting Birmingham City Council on Telephone: 0121 303 1234 Or email: acap@birmingham.gov.uk 

The person you care for is entitled to independent advocacy support through their Assessment process. This is a free service, independent of Adult Social Care services.

Independent advocacy aims to make it easier for you, and the person you care, for to navigate the Assessment and Review processes, ensuring the rights of the person you care for are upheld, supporting them to achieve the best possible outcomes.

As a Carer you may also be entitled to independent advocacy support through your Statutory Carer’s Assessment. Please visit the POhWER website, or call them on 0300 456 2370 to find out more.

To be eligible for a Statutory Carer’s Assessment you must: 

• be 18 years or over and be caring for another adult aged 18 years or over
• be caring for somebody who is a resident of Birmingham (Birmingham City Council)
• not have had a Carer’s Assessment in the previous 12 months unless there has been significant change in your caring circumstances

If you care for an adult, you can ask for a Carer’s Assessment at any time and the assessment can be carried out over the telephone, online or face to face at one of our Hubs or in your home. If your situation changes and you need more help, you can ask for a reassessment. 

You do not have to have a Carer’s Assessment; it will not stop the person you care for from receiving services. 

You can ask a friend or representative (including an independent advocate) to be with you for your assessment. You are entitled to a written copy of your Carer’s Assessment and if you do not receive this, please let Birmingham Carers Hub know.  

When you contact Birmingham Carers Hub to request a Carer’s Assessment, we will undertake the assessment by asking you questions about your caring situation and the impact it has on your wellbeing. We will help you to consider the options that may assist improve your wellbeing as well as remaining safety and resilience in your caring role. 

There is no charge for a Carer’s Assessment and Carers are not currently charged for support they may receive. 

To request a Carer’s Assessment call the Birmingham Carers Hub on  0333 006 9711  or email info@birminghamcarershub.org.uk 

If you care for an adult, you can ask for a Carer’s Assessment at any time and the assessment can be carried out over the telephone, online or face to face at one of our Hubs or in your home. Please allow around two hours for your assessment. If your situation changes and you need more help, you can ask for a reassessment. 

If you would like a Carer’s Assessment at one of our Hubs, you can access this via our following Delivery Partners some of whom can help if English is not your first language:

• Midland Mencap 0121 442 2944
• Headway Birmingham and Solihull 0121 457 7541
• Chinese Community Centre Birmingham   0121 685 8510
• OSCAR Birmingham  0121 212 9209
• YMCA Sutton Coldfield 0121 354 5614
• Ashiana Community Project 0121 687 6767
• Narthex Sparkhill 0121 753 1959
• Small Heath Community Forum (0121) 773 8619

You can ask a friend or representative (including an independent advocate) to be with you for your assessment. You are entitled to a written copy of your Carer’s Assessment and if you do not receive this, please let Birmingham Carers Hub know.  

• Information, advice and support from us or carers’ organisations
• Welfare entitlement support
• Referral to other specialist groups which provide expert advice and support about health, housing, benefits, employment, education, training and leisure opportunities
• Referral to carers’ support groups
• Registration for Emergency Carers Support Service
• Training for your caring role
• In certain circumstances, counselling or practical assistance to support you in your caring role
• Involvement as a carer in consultations and service development
• Allocation of a ‘Carer Wellbeing Budget’ to address a particular need

When you have your Carer’s Assessment (adult caring for an adult only), we will talk to you about your caring role and any needs you need support with. We will agree specific outcomes that you want to achieve to address your support needs and the actions required to achieve this.  Your outcomes can be met in a number of ways including with the offer of support and services highlighted above. It may also include allocating you a Carer Wellbeing Payment.

If it was agreed as part of your assessment to issue you with a Caring Wellbeing Payment, this will be sent directly to your bank account. This payment is to support your unmet support needs, agreed in your Carer’s Assessment. Use of the wellbeing payment will be discussed as part of your Carer’s Assessment Review, (between three to six months, after your Carer’s Assessment).

If you care for a child with a disability, Birmingham Children’s Trust will consider your own needs as part of the family assessment, or you can request a separate assessment by contacting Children’s services on 0121 303 1888.

Birmingham Carers Hub can offer a Wellbeing Check for parent carers and advise you about the support we can provide:

• Information, advice and support from us or other organisations
• Welfare entitlement support
• Referral to other specialist groups which provide expert advice and support about health, housing, benefits, employment, education, training and leisure opportunities
• Referral to carers’ support groups
• Registration for Emergency Carers Support Service
• Training for your caring role
• In certain circumstances, counselling or practical assistance to support you in your caring role
• Information on short breaks

If you are under 18 and you are taking on a lot of responsibility as a result of a condition that a grandparent, parent or sibling has, it is important that your needs are looked at too. You can contact Spurgeons who offer support to young carers: Telephone 0121 227 7000 or Email birminghamyc@spurgeons.org