Who Is a Carer?

A carer is someone who provides regular, unpaid support to a person who cannot fully manage daily life due to a long-term illness, disability, mental health condition, or substance dependency. This support may involve helping with everyday tasks, offering emotional encouragement, assisting with medication, attending healthcare appointments, or ensuring the person remains safe and comfortable.

Carers can be people of any age or background. Some young people help care for a parent or family member, while adults may look after a partner, relative, or close friend. The person receiving care may be living with conditions such as dementia, physical disabilities, learning disabilities, sensory impairments, frailty, or recovering from an illness or medical procedure.

Many people who support others do not immediately recognise themselves as carers. However, understanding and acknowledging this role can be important. Identifying yourself as a carer can help you access useful information, practical assistance, and support services that are available to you. It also enables healthcare professionals to involve you more effectively as part of the care team.

Providing care can be a meaningful and positive experience, but it can also place emotional and physical demands on your own wellbeing. For this reason, it is important to remember that support is available for carers as well. Accessing advice, community resources, and professional support can help ensure both you and the person you care for receive the help needed.

What Is a Young Carer?

A young carer is a person under the age of 18 who regularly helps look after a family member, such as a parent, sibling, or relative, who has a long-term illness, disability, mental health condition, or struggles with substance misuse.

Young carers often help with a range of everyday responsibilities. These might include tasks such as preparing meals, helping with household chores, assisting someone with getting dressed, or providing emotional support. For many young people, these activities may simply feel like part of daily family life, so they may not always realise that they are taking on a caring role.

Recognising that you are a young carer is important because it can help you access the support and resources that are available. While caring for someone can be meaningful, young people should not feel pressured to handle responsibilities that affect their own wellbeing.

Support services are available to help ensure that young carers can continue focusing on their education, health, and personal development, while also supporting their family.

Young carers also have specific rights. You can request a young carer’s assessment through your local council, which helps identify what support you or your family might benefit from. This could include practical assistance, emotional support, or advice about balancing school, personal life, and caring responsibilities.

Remember, you are not alone. There are organisations, services, and professionals who understand the challenges young carers may face and are there to help you get the support you deserve.

Everyday Responsibilities of a Carer

Providing care for someone often involves helping with a variety of daily activities that support their safety, comfort, and overall wellbeing. While each task might appear simple on its own, the combination of responsibilities can require significant time, effort, and dedication.

Whether you have recently taken on a caring role or have been supporting someone for a long time, it’s completely normal to sometimes feel that these daily duties can be demanding.

As a carer, your responsibilities may include a range of activities such as:

Household Support

Helping with everyday household tasks like preparing meals, doing laundry, tidying the home, and maintaining a safe and organised living environment.

Personal Care Assistance

Supporting someone with personal needs such as bathing, dressing, maintaining hygiene, or helping them with daily routines like brushing their teeth.

Mobility Support

Assisting the person you care for with moving safely around the house or helping them go out when needed.

Accompanying to Appointments

Attending medical or support appointments together, such as visits to the GP, hospital consultations, or meetings with social care professionals.

Managing Practical Matters

Helping with administrative tasks such as paying bills, organising paperwork, completing forms, or assisting with benefit applications and other financial matters.

Emotional Support

Offering reassurance, companionship, and someone to talk to. Providing emotional support can be just as important as helping with physical tasks.

Carer’s assessment
If you’re looking after someone regularly, it’s easy to put their needs first. But your wellbeing matters too. That’s where a carer’s assessment comes in.

A carer’s assessment is a free conversation with your local council about the impact caring is having on your life and what might help. You don’t need to live with the person or care full time to be eligible and you don’t have to call yourself a carer to ask for support.

If you regularly help with things like cooking, cleaning, personal care or just keeping someone company, you count as a carer.

 

What could a carer’s assessment help with?
Depending on your situation, it might recommend:

Support so you can take a break from caring
Help with household tasks
Advice on benefits and financial support
Access to local support groups or training
Gym memberships or activities to look after your wellbeing
Transport costs, if you don’t drive
Practical tools like lifting techniques or home adaptations
You can have a carer’s assessment on your own or at the same time as the person you care for has their assessment. It usually takes place face to face, but some councils can do it over the phone or online.

 

How to get a carer’s assessment
You can request an assessment by contacting adult social services at your local council. If you’re caring for a child, contact the children with disabilities team instead. You can apply online or by phone, and the assessment is free for anyone aged 18 or over.

Preparing for your assessment
It helps to be prepared. Try to think about how caring affects your:

  • Physical and mental health
  • Sleep, social life and relationships
  • Employment or education
  • Ability to look after yourself
    You can bring someone along for support or ask for an advocate if you’d like someone to speak on your behalf.

 

After the assessment
If you’re eligible for support, the council will work with you to create a support plan and may help with costs. If you’re not eligible, they should still offer free advice and signpost you to other sources of help.