Information sheet C1* - advice and needs assessment

• PDF standard
• PDF (large print)

Information sheet C2* - what we ask about in a needs assessment

• PDF (standard)
• PDF (large print)

Information sheet C3* - your entitlement to care and support

• PDF (standard)
• PDF (large print)

Information sheet C4* - advice, assessment and support for carers

• PDF (standard)
• PDF (large print)

Information sheet C6* - care and support planning

• PDF (standard)
• PDF (large print)

Information sheet C8* - paying for care and support (from 12 April 2021)

• PDF (Standard)
• PDF (Large print)

A full copy of the Council's charging policy is also available.  This is a more formal document than our information sheets, and for most purposes the information sheets on charging are likely to be more helpful.  The national regulations which the policy refers to can be found on the legislation.gov.uk website.  Unfortunately when these change only the amendments are included in the new regulations, so there is no simple way to see the full current version.  An easier way to find the nationally-set figures that we use in financial assessments is to find the most recent local authority circular about charges on the Government website.

Information sheet C9* - charges for living in a care home (from 12 April 2021)

• PDF (Standard)
• PDF (Large print)

Information sheet C10* - communicating with us by email

• PDF (standard)
• PDF (large print)

Information sheet C11* - NHS Continuing Healthcare (CHC)

• PDF (standard)
• PDF (large print)

Information sheet C12* - complaints, comments and compliments

• PDF (standard)
• PDF (large print)
• Also see - Have your say leaflet

Information sheet C15 - care and support in your home
(in preparation)

Information sheet C16 - equipment for independent living

• PDF (standard)
• PDF (large print)

Information sheet C17 - adaptations to your home

• PDF (standard)
• PDF (large print)

Information sheet S4* - safeguarding adults

• PDF (standard)
• PDF (large print)

Information sheet 8 - help with moving into a care home
In preparation

Information sheet 9 - living in a care home: your rights

• PDF (standard)
• PDF (large print)

Information sheet 11 - person-centred planning for people with a learning disability

• PDF (standard)

Information sheet 14 - direct payments

• PDF (standard)
• PDF (large print)

Information sheet 15 - seeing a financial assessment and benefits officer (from 12 April 2021)

• PDF (Standard)
• PDF (Large print)

Information sheet 16 - paying for support in the community (from 12 April 2021)

• PDF (Standard)
• PDF (Large print)

Information sheet 17 - reclaiming charges for breaks in services (from 12 April 2021)

• PDF (Standard)
• PDF (Large print)

Information sheet 19 - maximum charges for community support (from 12 April 2021)

• PDF (Standard)
• PDF (Large print)

Information sheet 20 - charges for a short stay in a care home (from 12 April 2021)

• PDF (Standard)
• PDF (Large print)

Information sheet 24 - smoke free environment

• PDF (standard)
• PDF(large print)

Information sheet 29 - making allowance for the cost of disability (from 12 April 2021)

• PDF (Standard)
• PDF (Large print)

People’s lives shouldn’t have to stop because they are disabled or have a long-term illness. We aim to make sure people can get the support they need to enable them to continue to live in the way they want.

We offer two kinds of support arrangement:

• crisis support for people who urgently need help after a health crisis or a serious accident
• self-directed support for people with longer-term support needs

Crisis support focuses on making sure people’s immediate needs are met, helping them to recover and to become independent. Many people only need crisis support.

Self-directed support aims to put people in charge of their own support arrangements. People are offered a personal budget which they are encouraged to manage themselves, or with help from family and friends. We can also make arrangements on people's behalf.

We set the amount of the personal budget based on a shared assessment. Personal budgets can be used flexibly to overcome obstacles to living the way you want caused by illness or disability. For instance:

• If you need support with day-to-day tasks or if you need someone to be on hand to make sure you are safe, you can use a personal budget to employ someone or to make arrangements so people you know can help you.
• If you need support to take part in social, leisure or educational activities, you can use a personal budget to arrange that.
• If family members or friends who usually provide you with support need a break, you can use a personal budget to make whatever arrangements are necessary.

You will need to agree a support plan with us, setting out how you will use your personal budget. We will check this is safe and legal. We can help you to draw up support plans, or if you want you can do it yourself.

We will review your personal budget and your support plan at intervals to check whether any changes are needed.

If your disability or illness does not cause you any problems in critical areas of life, you may not be eligible for a personal budget. We may still be able to give you advice about services and equipment which might help you and about other possibilities such as adaptations to your home.

If your disability or illness is so serious you cannot realistically stay in your own home, we can help you to move into supported housing or a care home.

We keep information about people we arrange help for in our files and on computer records. This information is shared with other people who need to know it to make arrangements for your support, but is otherwise kept strictly confidential.

Ask any of our staff if you want to know what information is being held, or if you would like some information not to be shared.

Most people have to pay towards the cost of their care and support services, but people would not be expected to pay more than they can afford based on their income and savings. The amount will depend on your financial circumstances.

Some people will be assessed as being able to pay all the costs of their care and support themselves but we will still offer help and advice if they want it. As a general guide, as of April 2018 people with savings of more than £23,250* were expected to pay the maximum charge, and pensions and other income were also taken into account. More information about charges is given in our information sheets below.

*Please check information sheet C8 on paying for care and support for the latest information on charges for support if you are living at home, or information sheet C9 for charges for people living in a care home.

Care homes provide care, accommodation and board for people who need a high level of support. They are required by law to be registered with the Care Quality Commission (CQC).

People who live in Northumberland and need this level of care can get financial support from the county council, through its partnership with Northumbria Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust, if they are not able to afford the fees themselves.

• You should contact our care management service if you wish to explore this option.

A complete list of registered care homes in England is available on the CQC website, which also holds inspection reports providing detailed information about the services offered by each home and the quality of what is provided.

• Click here to find out more information about Care Homes in Northumberland and to find out about which homes Northumberland County Council contract with and how we check the quality of care.

• Click here to find out more about support for carers. 

Extra Care and Supported Housing Strategy

A partnership approach, led by Social Care, working with Health and Housing commissioners has been adopted to develop and implement this strategy

Get involved and have your say
Information about how to get involved in helping shape services through one of the service user forums across Northumberland is available by clicking here.

Northumberland Golden Guide
Northumberland Golden Guide contains information about services and support for older people in Northumberland.

Northumberland Life
Northumberland Life is a local web-based directory of groups and services in and around Northumberland. It is valuable for anyone who wants to know what Northumberland's communities can offer, from parents looking for activities for young children to older people looking for like-minded groups; from people who want to take up new activities to people who want to make contact with others affected by the same disability or illness.

The National Careline
The National Careline is a not-for-profit company offering information about care and support for older people, their carers and their families. It aims to fill the information and advice gap for older people and their relatives who are seeking to find their way through the care maze. The National Careline also provides a wealth of extra information users may find beneficial in their support and care of the older person.
 

Address: 10 Chibburn Court, Widdrington, Northumberland, NE61 5QT

Chibburn Court supports residential care to people with learning disabilities for three adults with learning disabilities. The service is provided in a large adapted bungalow within its own grounds located within a quiet residential cul-de-sac.

Staff provide 24 hour care seven days a week. Each service user has an individual support plan and support includes assistance with personal care, daily living skills and activities as well as ongoing support from health and social care services.

The staff team provide physical and emotional support to service users whilst carrying out, with service users, a number of domestic type duties such as cleaning, laundry, shopping and cooking. Staff support service users to engage in social and community activities they have expressed an interest in.

Address: Council Offices, Wallace Green, Berwick upon Tweed, TD15 1ED
 
The Short Term Support Service provides care and rehabilitation in people’s homes for patients in Northumberland following a serious accident or illness; or a short period of personal care and practical support for people with cancer or a life limiting illness and their families.

The aim is to help people live independently and safely. The service focuses on things which are important to the service user with an emphasis on trying to help them regain skills and confidence.

The service can provide a rehabilitation programme led by a physiotherapist or occupational therapist; help with tasks such as washing, dressing or meal preparation; and equipment or minor adaptations to people’s homes to help them live safely and independently. The CQC inspects this service by geographical area. Below are ratings for the service in the Berwick area.

Address: 3 Linnet Court, Hawfinch Drive, Cawledge Park, Alnwick, NE22 2GD

The Short Term Support Service provides care and rehabilitation in people’s homes for patients in Northumberland following a serious accident or illness; or a short period of personal care and practical support for people with cancer or a life limiting illness and their families.

The aim is to help people live independently and safely. The service focuses on things which are important to the service user with an emphasis on trying to help them regain skills and confidence.

The service can provide a rehabilitation programme led by a physiotherapist or occupational therapist; help with tasks such as washing, dressing or meal preparation; and equipment or minor adaptations to people’s homes to help them live safely and independently. The CQC inspects this service by geographical area. Below are ratings for the service in the Alnwick area.

Address: Sea Lodge, Beach Road, Morpeth, Northumberland, NE61 5LF

Northumberland Supported Living Service provides an independent supported living service at Sea Lodge for two adults with learning disabilities. Service users have secured tenancy agreements and live in a large adapted bungalow within its own grounds with private beach in Cresswell.

As well as assisting the clients with personal daily living activities the staff team carry out all the housekeeping duties including cleaning, laundry, shopping and cooking. Service users have their own personal individual mobility cars and staff support them to access community activities and services they enjoy.

Address: County Hall, Floor 2, Block 2, Morpeth, Northumberland, NE61 2EF

Shared Lives Northumberland provides support in a family home for adults who are unable to live alone. The service and team of five staff is based at County Hall, Morpeth and supports approximately 45 service users with learning, physical or health related disabilities and their carers across Northumberland.

Most service users do not need residential care but are unable to live without consistent and reliable support from someone who knows them. Living in someone’s home provides a better quality and more appropriate lifestyle for the person.

Address: The Harbour Suite, Blyth Community Hospital, Thoroton Street, Blyth NE24 1DX
 
The Short Term Support Service provides care and rehabilitation in people’s homes for patients in Northumberland following a serious accident or illness; or a short period of personal care and practical support for people with cancer or a life limiting illness and their families.

The aim is to help people live independently and safely. The service focuses on things which are important to the service user with an emphasis on trying to help them regain skills and confidence.

The service can provide a rehabilitation programme led by a physiotherapist or occupational therapist; help with tasks such as washing, dressing or meal preparation; and equipment or minor adaptations to people’s homes to help them live safely and independently. The CQC inspects this service by geographical area. Below are ratings for the service in central and south Northumberland.

Address: Tynedale Drive, Cowpen, Blyth, Northumberland, NE24 4LH

Tynedale House offers long-term residential accommodation and short-term respite care for adults with learning disabilities. The residential service provides personal care and support through individual support plans and ongoing support from Health and Social care services.

The service also works closely with other providers of care delivering support on a one-to-one basis to users on site. The respite service provides short-term care for adults with learning disabilities to support the well-being of the carer and the person who is being cared for.

Stays can be as short or as long as needed. Respite can also provide parents and families with a necessary and valuable break from caring responsibilities.

Address: 2, Hatfield Chase, Bedlington, Northumberland, NE22 5LB

Wansbeck Supported Living Service offers an independent supported living domiciliary service for adults with learning disabilities within their own homes. The service is provided within their own purpose built bungalows, and clients have their own tenancy agreements with the local housing association Bernicia.

Staff provide 24-hour support seven days a week including supporting service users’ with personal care, encouraging independence and social and psychological support with daily living skills.

The service assists and helps support service users to be valued and included in their communities; to access community facilities and social and leisure activities; to access resources; to remain safe within their home environment and to develop the necessary skills to support independence and achieve their individual choices and personal aspirations.

Address: Dene Park House, Corbridge Road, Hexham, NE46 1HN
 
The Short Term Support Service provides care and rehabilitation in people’s homes for patients in Northumberland following a serious accident or illness; or a short period of personal care and practical support for people with cancer or a life limiting illness and their families.

The aim is to help people live independently and safely. The service focuses on things which are important to the service user with an emphasis on trying to help them regain skills and confidence.

The service can provide a rehabilitation programme led by a physiotherapist or occupational therapist; help with tasks such as washing, dressing or meal preparation; and equipment or minor adaptations to people’s homes to help them live safely and independently. The CQC inspects this service by geographical area. Below are ratings for the service in west Northumberland.

The council's day care centres provide specialist services for older people with dementia in southeast Northumberland. Similar services, operated by voluntary organisations, are available in other parts of the county.

Essendene Day Service
Tynedale House
Tynedale Drive
Blyth
NE24 4LH

• Tel: (01670) 364 660
• Fax Number

Additional services: 17 day care places from Mon to Friday - 10 day care places from Saturday to Sunday

• show map

There are a number of day services for people with learning disabilities across the county. Managed by Northumberland County Council

Mowbray Day Centre
Stakeford Lane
Stakeford
Choppington 
Northumberland
NE62 5HQ
Contact tel          
•    Tel: (01670) 536230
•   Show Map 

Blyth Riverside Resource Centre
Coniston Road
Blyth Riverside Business Park
Blyth
NE24 4RQ

• Tel: (01670) 353 276
• Fax: (01670) 353 495
• show map

Horticultural Skills Unit
Hepscott Park
Stannington
Morpeth
NE61 6NF

• Website: HSU Hepscott website
• Email: Click here to email them.
• Tel: (01670) 623911

The Garden Cafe
Hepscott Park
Stannington
Morpeth
NE61 6NF

• Tel: (01670) 623916
• show map

Horticultural Training Unit
West Sleekburn Farm
Bomarsund
Bedlington
NE22 7AD

• Website: Sleekburn HTU website
• Email: Click here to email them.
• Telephone: 01670 530111
• show map

The Northstar Centre
St Mary's
Castlegate
Berwick
TD15 1JX

• Tel: (01289) 305 105
• show map

The Pottergate Centre
Howling Lane
Alnwick
NE66 1DJ

• Tel: (01665) 602 181
• Fax: (01665) 605 378
• show map

The Tynedale Centre
Unit 13
Haugh Lane Industrial Estate
Hexham
NE46 3PU

• Tel: (01434) 605 245
• Fax: (01434) 609 021
• show map

Tynedale Horticultural Service
Minsteracres Retreat Centre,
Consett,
County Durham
DH8 9RT

• Website: Tynedale HS website
• Email: Click here to email them.
• Tel: (01434) 344933

We want people to maintain their independence and stay in their own homes as long as possible. However, for people whose disability or illness is so serious they cannot stay in their own homes, moving into a care home may be an option. 

Care homes provide care, accommodation and board for people needing high levels of support. They are required by law to be registered with the Care Quality Commission (CQC).

People living in Northumberland who need this level of care can get financial support from the county council if they are not able to afford the fees themselves.  Some people with particularly complex needs may be eligible for NHS funding for a place in a care home, regardless of their financial circumstances (but some care homes may charge higher fees than the NHS will pay).

Contact us using the details at the top of this page if you think you may need to move into a care home and would like advice or financial help.

If you live in the county and qualify for financial support from the Council or the NHS, we are responsible for arranging this even if you prefer to move to a care home somewhere else.

Whether or not you need financial support, we recommend looking at a number of options.  You can find out what is available using the links below:

• A list of care homes in Northumberland registered to accommodate older people is available here.  (This includes a small number of care homes which only accommodate older people with more specific needs, such as learning disability, but most homes on the list will provide accomodation for any for older person in need of the care that they provide.)
• If you want to find a care home somewhere else in the country (for instance because you want to move into a care home near members of your family), you can enter a postcode on this page to search for care homes within a specified distance of any address in England

A personal budget is how much money you are eligible to receive to pay for your support, based on the new system called self-directed support. It is calculated based on an assessment of your needs.

Direct payments are just one way in which people can be given their personal budget.

Anyone aged 16 or over, assessed by a care manager as needing community care, has a right to opt for direct payments, though there are a few restrictions:

• You must be willing and able to manage the paperwork and responsibilities involved (with someone helping if necessary).
• You may not be eligible if you have been detained under mental health legislation.

Carers can only get direct payments to replace services provided directly to them. They can’t get money to buy services for the person they care for.

Direct payments can be used to pay for:

• personal assistance (e.g. help from an agency)
• daytime care, short breaks or special equipment

They can not be used to pay for:

• general living expenses (e.g. fuel bills)
• health or housing services
• services provided by a public-sector organisation
• long-term residential care
• your live-in partner or relative 

Direct payments are based on the amount and type of care you need. This is assessed by a care manager.
You can choose to receive direct payments for all your care, or only for some parts of it.

We will agree a reasonable cost for the care, including money for recruiting staff, insurance, wages and other costs such as national insurance, holiday, sickness and maternity pay. Usually this will be based on an hourly rate for the care needed.

We cannot pay more than it would cost if we arranged the service ourselves.

We will assess how much you can afford to pay yourself towards the cost of your support, using the same rules that apply to charges for services. You either pay this separately or have it subtracted from your direct payments.

If you choose direct payments, you will have to:

• open a separate bank account specifically to use for your direct payment
• use the money to pay for the help your community care assessment shows you need
• keep records of how the money is used
• be accountable for the way the money is spent
• be responsible for arranging your own care (including back up arrangements)
• take on the responsibilities of an employer if you employ your own staff

The person receiving direct payment must be able to make decisions about the support they buy in, but they can get help with the day-to-day management of things like paperwork. This can come from us, from family or friends, or through legal arrangements like a trust or power of attorney.

For instance, you may want help with:

• how to recruit and select personal assistants
• how to write job descriptions and contracts
• how to become an employer
• how to deal with tax and national insurance 

You will continue to have a care manager, who reviews your circumstances regularly. If your needs have changed, or if the rules about how much support we can provide have changed, this may lead to an increase or reduction in payments.

We would also do an annual check on how you are using the money and what services you have arranged.

Direct payments will not affect your social security benefits or tax liabilities.

You can ask at any time to stop getting direct payments and change to services arranged by us. If your needs are complex, we will need some notice to sort this out.

To find out more, talk to your care manager, or contact:

Self Directed Support Team
Northumbria Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust
Merley Croft
Loansdean
Morpeth
NE61 2DL

• Telephone: (01670) 629090
• Email: directpayments@northumbria-healthcare.nhs.uk

Adult social care

• Telephone: 01670 536 400
• Email address: Socialcare@northumbria.nhs.uk

There are national rules about what services can be charged for, and how Councils must assess people’s ability to pay. The details are complicated¹, but the main points are:

• Councils don’t have to make charges for care and support services (except when they arrange for someone to live in a care home who has savings above a certain level, when they must charge the person the full cost).  However in practice Councils do not have enough money to be able to afford not to make charges.  The national rules say what is the most a person can be asked to pay; councils may charge less than this if they decide they can afford to.
• Councils can charge the person who needs care and support, and can also charge friend or family carers for any support provided directly to them as carers.
• Councils can’t charge anyone more than the cost to the Council of providing their services.
• Councils must carry out a financial assessment of each person to decide how much they can afford to pay (though if someone wants to keep their finances to themselves, they can turn down a financial assessment and just pay the full cost).
• Councils can charge the full cost of services provided to anyone who has more savings than the capital limit (currently £23,250).
• Otherwise, councils must make sure that after paying charges people are still left with at least a minimum income guaranteed amount.  This minimum amount varies depending on the person’s age, whether they are part of a couple, and the level of their disability or their caring responsibilities (the rules for assessing these are linked to social security benefits rules).
• Councils must ignore some income, including earnings from work, when they assess what someone can afford to pay.  (However they can take account of occupational pensions and most social security benefits.)
• However much money a person has, a council must offer to arrange the services they need (except for care home accommodation), though some people may prefer to make private arrangements so as to have as much control as possible over their care arrangements.  If someone with savings above the capital limit does ask the Council to arrange services, the Council can make an administrative charge for doing this.

¹They can be found in full on the internet. The legal regulations are available at www.tinyurl.com/ChargingRegs, and the government guidance setting out the rules in more detail is at www.tinyurl.com/CSGuidance. Unfortunately these are not easy documents to understand.

The Council’s policy is more generous than required by the national rules in a number of ways:

• The national rules say that people receiving certain benefits are entitled to ask for an assessment of their disability-related expenditure, which should be subtracted from the amount which they are assessed as able to pay.  The Council automatically assumes that some of each person’s income pays for disability related expenditure without requiring an assessment of what they actually spend.
• The guaranteed minimum income which we ensure that someone in a couple is left with after paying charges is higher than required by the national rules.
• We don’t charge people living in rural areas the full cost of their home care, although it costs us more to provide them with services than for people in more densely-populated parts of Northumberland.
• There are some day services which we don’t currently charge for, and others which we don’t charge the full cost for.
• We offer a discount for payment by Direct Debit.
• We don’t charge an administrative fee for arranging services for people who can afford to pay the full cost.

We are now reviewing all of these differences from the minimum national requirements. The following sections of this consultation document explain each of these issues further, and say what changes we are thinking of making.

If all of the proposals in this consultation document are implemented, we estimate that this will save the Council about £1.1m annually.  We expect this saving to arise in two ways:

• An increase in income from charges.
• An increase in the number of people choosing to make arrangements independently instead of asking the Council to arrange their care.  This will reduce income from charges, but will help us to achieve a separate saving included in the Council’s draft budget proposals for the year from April 2019, by reducing the amount that the Council spends on subsidising the cost of care services.

The Council’s existing yearly income from charges for non-residential services is £6.25m.  Its expenditure on these services is £41.5m.

We would expect any increase in the number of people choosing to make private arrangements mainly to result from choices made by people who would be assessed as able to pay the full cost of their care.  In that situation, if the cost to someone of a private service is about the same as the charges which they would have to pay to the Council, people may opt for private arrangements as a way of having more control over the way in which their service is provided.

If people do make this choice, the Council’s income will reduce rather than increasing, but the Council’s expenditure on paying the services will reduce by a larger amount, so the overall effect on the Council’s finances will be similar.

The Council’s draft budget for 2019/20 includes a saving of £2.5m in what the Council spends on paying for care and support services, and a saving of £450,000 for increased income from charges.  We hope to achieve much of the £2.5m saving by finding better ways to meet individual people’s needs.  But our working assumption is that some of this saving will arise because people will choose to make private arrangements if the Council does not subsidise the home care it arranges.

Anyone who is assessed as needing community-based care and support services has a right to ask the Council to arrange these², so it would be up to individual choice how much of the saving from the proposed changes to charges would come through increased income, and how much through reduced costs.  But the overall financial effect of the proposals would be the same, whichever choices people make.

²The legal position is different for people who need to move into a care home. If they can afford to make private arrangements, and are able to do so, they do not have a right to have arrangements made by the Council.

Details of what we consulted on

The consultation period ended on 21 December 2018.  The online form for consultation responses is no longer available, but the information included in the form was the same as in the consultation document available through the links below.

The documents which we sent in October to current service users who might be affected were:

• A short summary of the proposed changes.
• Answers to some of the questions we thought people were likely to ask.
• A detailed consultation document 

If you are not sure how the proposals could affect you

If you have questions about how the proposals might affect you personally, please either send us an email at SCFinance@northumberland.gov.uk, or phone us on (01670) 622 891.

You are a carer if you provide unpaid help to someone who depends upon you because of:

• frailty
• mental or physical health problems
• illness or drug/alcohol misuse

You may not live in the same house and you don’t have to be related to the person you care for.

This section provides information to carers of adults who want to know how to ask for an assessment of their own needs.

• Parents caring for children with special needs should contact the family support team.
• For information on how the needs of the person you care for can be assessed, go to social care support.

You have a right to advice and a ‘carer’s assessment’ of your own needs. You don't have to be providing a lot of care to be entitled to help. You can have a carer’s assessment even if the person you care for hasn't had an assessment themselves. Alternatively, if you and the person you care for prefer, we can assess both your needs at the same time. This is known as a combined assessment.

A carer’s assessment is a detailed discussion with a trained member of staff, which will produce a statement of what your needs are, what you can do to reduce them or prevent them from getting worse. If caring is having a significant impact on your wellbeing, the assessment may suggest you are entitled to support.

You don’t have to have a carer’s assessment to get advice about available support. The countywide organisation Carers Northumberland, a charity partly funded by the council, can provide advice and support with a wide range of issues. It can also put you in touch with other people in a similar situation.

• Carers Northumberland can also talk to you about whether having a carer’s assessment would be helpful to you.

If the person who you are providing care and support to is having a needs assessment themselves you will need to be involved in this assessment. We recommend you also have a carer’s assessment. We can then make sure you have the help and information you need to look after your own health and wellbeing, and ensure we take account of your needs when planning how to meet theirs. Find out more here.

• If you are aged under 18, you should have a carer’s assessment. You can find more information about what a carer’s assessment will involve here.

If you have had an assessment but either your needs or the needs of the person you care for have changed, you should contact the care manager again to request a review.

Contact us

• Telephone: 01670 536 400
• Email: socialcare@northumbria.nhs.uk

You can also contact the care manager of the person you care for.

Our carers’ guide and strategy
Northumberland family and friends carers' guide (currently under review) explains the types of help and support you need as a carer and how to access it. It also explains in detail how a needs assessment can help you and makes suggestions about how to prepare for it.

For further information, please contact Carers Northumberland or contact Onecall on:

• Telephone: 01670 536 400
• Email: socialcare@northumbria.nhs.uk

Carers’ wellbeing checklist
Northumberland carers’ health and wellbeing checklist aims to help you think about your own health, how your role affects your life and to consider things you can change. The purpose of the wellbeing check is to help you access health interventions and to continue caring safely, without your own health suffering.

• Ask your care manager, or any professional you work with for a hard copy or contact Carers Northumberland on 01670 320025

Carers Northumberland
Carers Northumberland is a support service for carers in Northumberland. It works in partnership with other agencies to offer a one-stop information service to carers, support groups, short break opportunities and events.

• Click here to read a copy of their leaflet.
• Telephone: 01670 320025
• Email: info@carersnorthumberland.org.uk

Carers Northumberland have also produced a number of other leaflets:

• Carers emergency card scheme (in partnership with the British Red Cross)

What support is there for carers in Northumberland?
Support for carers is available through the care management service and Carers Northumberland. To access this service, contact us on 01670 536 400 or contact the care manager of the person you care for, or call Carers Northumberland on 01670 320 025.

What help can I get if I am caring and working?
Combining paid work and caring can be difficult, and there is a growing recognition of the support needs of working carers. Taking on caring should not mean you have to give up work. A carer’s assessment should take into account a carer's wish to work. 

• Click here for more information.

What benefits can I receive as a carer?
There are a range of benefits, tax credits and other financial support you may be able to receive as a carer. To find out which benefits you could be eligible for as a carer, visit Gov.uk or talk to us on 01670 536 400. You can also ask the care manager of the person you care for or ring Carers Northumberland on 01670 320 025.

What is a carer’s allowance?
Carer's allowance is a benefit that may be paid to carers of working age who provide more than 35 hours of care a week. Entitlement is linked to the benefits paid to the person being cared for. However, you don't have to be related to, or live with, the person you care for. 

• For full details of individual entitlement, visit Gov.uk.

What is a carer’s assessment?
If you provide a lot of care regularly to a relative or friend and your role is having an impact on your life, you have the right to ask for a carer’s assessment. A carer's assessment is your opportunity to tell social care about what could make caring easier for you. You can discuss help you need to maintain your own health and to balance caring with other aspects of your life, like work and family.

You also have a right to an assessment if:

• you intend to look after someone
• you are caring for a disabled child (your needs as a carer will be considered as part of the needs of your child)

The services that might be provided to carers include:

• substitute care to enable you to have a break from your caring role
• support with particular tasks or equipment to help you care
• advice and support in your role as a carer
• benefits information and advice

I need a break from my caring responsibilities. Is there any help available to me?
If the person you care for has a care manager, speak to them about short-break care arrangements. A carer’s assessment helps identify what breaks you need and how these will be arranged.

Carers Northumberland can also offer small grants through the carers support fund to help you fund a short break for yourself, if your family’s financial position means this would be difficult otherwise.

The Northumbria palliative care service aims:

• to identify all patients with palliative care needs and ensure those needs are met through direct care, advice, information and education
• to provide a comprehensive, “joined up” palliative care service to patients and their families in all settings with the service working seamlessly between hospital and community provision
• to deliver planned and anticipatory care, as well as emergency and unplanned care 24 hours a day, seven days a week
• to enable patients to stay in their place of choice by offering emotional and practical support for carers and family members as well as providing specialist input where needed
• to deliver excellence in all aspects of care with a commitment to service innovation, measurement of quality and continuous improvement
• to improve patient outcomes and experience by ensuring that all providers work to shared objectives, and to consistent care and quality standards

Hospital admissions in the last 100 days of life

Admissions to hospital in the last 100  days of life	Acute and community bed days per death	Acute bed days per death
14/15 baseline	8.8	7.1
15/16 Q1	8.4	6.6
15/16 Q2	7.7	6.2
15/16 Q3	7.0	5.7
15/16 to date	7.7	6.1

 
These figures show the number of days spent in hospital by patients in Northumberland in their last 100 days of life – for 2015/16. Admissions to both acute and community hospital has shown a downward trend. (Source: Northumbria Healthcare |NHS Foundation Trust Information Services – Analysis and reporting 17 February 2016.)
  
Patients’ preferred v. actual place of death 

Patients’ preferred place of death against actual place of death:  1 August 2015 – 13 January 2016
Patients known to the palliative care unit* who have died	607
Patients known to the palliative care unit who died in hospital	87
Patients known to the palliative care unit who died in hospital with a preferred place of death recorded	40
Patients known to the palliative care unit who died in hospital with a preferred place of death recorded as hospital/hospice/question not appropriate\possible	28
Palliative care unit patients who have died in hospital with a preferred place of death recorded	46%
Palliative care unit patients who have died in hospital with their preferred place of death achieved	70%

 
Note
*The palliative care unit went live August 2015

Market Position Statements (and the relationships which support them) help influence the choice and quality of services on offer – and ensure that their supply has the capacity to meet demand and respond sustainably to anticipated changes. 

They also help deliver the local authority duty to shape the market in adult care and support introduced by the Care Act 2014.

Market Position Statement 2019

This is the council's Market Position Statement for 2019 which provides information on the current care market in Northumberland along with current demand and predicted future demand.

Led by Northumberland County Council, Ageing Well is coordinated by the Public Health Project Team, which forms part of the public health department of Northumbria Healthcare NHS Trust. They use a positive partnership approach to planning and working with local people, valuing and respecting their rich knowledge, skills, experience and energy to ensure Northumberland is a good place to grow older. 

By working with local partners who as part of their everyday role are in contact with older people and their carers/families, we can make sure that everyone who can help older people to become or sustain being more active, better connected and well, has a clear understanding about what they do best and work well together to strengthen existing provision.  

Ageing Well support may be offered to local communities to help them bring people together through seasonal road show events. Health promotion at these and other smaller road show Pop-Ups link the promotion of local community activity with the overall aims of Ageing Well and seasonal health priorities, such as sun safety and hydration, flu vaccinations, staying warm, and avoiding slips, trips and falls.

Ageing Well also supports the development of knowledge, skills and expertise of workers, volunteers and carers through a variety of training opportunities related to older people. Topics include dementia, falls, oral health, sexual health and cancer in older ladies and gentlemen.

In 2015, we introduced the role of Ageing Well Allies. This involves bespoke training around age-related health and lifestyle issues for staff and volunteers in a natural position to highlight services and community activities promoting health, wellbeing and socialisation for the ageing population.  

Ageing Well is funded by Northumberland County Council and supported by the active involvement of older people around the county. 

The Ageing Well Partnership Board maintains effective partnerships to develop a co-ordinated approach to the strategic planning for older people.

The Ageing Well Network meets quarterly and operates as a virtual information sharing platform for the rest of the year disseminating daily information including; upcoming events, training, activities, staying safe alerts and funding opportunities. Members include statutory, voluntary and charitable sector organisations, volunteers and the public.

For more information, contact Kay Yeo on 01670 629136 or Lorraine Henderson on 01670 629135.

Ageing Well Wheel

Ageing Well is a way of working with local people to ensure that Northumberland is a good place to live as we grow older.  The image below is called the Ageing Well Wheel and it highlights a number of key areas.  The outer circle of the wheel shows where the people who are involved with Ageing Well come from: local communities as well as a variety of services and organisations which are part of public health, housing and planning, health and social care.

The values which underpin the Ageing Well concept are also listed around the perimeter of the wheel: staying connected, feeling included, staying healthy, working together, valuing experience, building on strengths and keeping safe.



The segments of the wheel which surround the Ageing Well logo, highlight the main activities which are central to Ageing Well: local events, training, involvement forums, annual health campaigns, the Ageing Well network (which meets on a quarterly basis), the partnership board, dementia awareness, Ageing Well Allies, development projects and health improvement.

The information resource pack which provides more information about Ageing Well for anyone who may be interested. For more information, contact Kay Yeo on 01670 629136 or Lorraine Henderson on 01670 629135.
 

• Telephone: 01670 536 400
• Email address: Socialcare@northumbria.nhs.uk

Dementia is the term for a collection of symptoms that can be caused by various diseases which cause difficulties in thinking, problem solving, communicating and memory which affect people’s daily lives. Dementia affects each person in different ways but some of the more common problems often affect the way someone interacts with other people or their actions.

 How many are affected in Northumberland?
Around 35,000 people living in the North East have dementia and this is expected to rise.
In Northumberland around 2,500 people have been diagnosed with dementia, along with many others not yet diagnosed but experiencing memory loss or other symptoms who live in the community.
 
Who is at risk?
The risk of developing dementia increases with age. It more often occurs in people over 65 but can affect younger people in their early to mid-50’s or 60’s. There are no obvious physical signs that show someone has dementia or memory problems. If you or someone you know is worried about their memory, encourage them to contact their GP for advice.
 
Awareness
Dementia is progressive so the effects get worse over time. However many people with dementia lead active and fulfilling lives for many years. It can’t be cured yet but can be slowed down and people helped to live with it. To do this they need the communities in which they live to be aware of dementia, inclusive of people living with dementia, and that businesses and services support customers with dementia.
In Northumberland we want to promote dementia awareness and develop partnerships to support people to get an early diagnosis and be able to continue to live safe and fulfilling lives in familiar surroundings.
By working together with partners we can all help to make our towns and villages more understanding and supportive of people experiencing some of the difficulties associated with having dementia.  
 
Living with dementia in the home
People with dementia tell us they want to be able to feel safe and able to continue to live in their own homes, which are familiar to them for as long as possible. To help with this, all new housing developments in Northumberland consider how to best support people with dementia. The University of Stirling’s Dementia Services Development Centre has produced guidance for professionals including Designing Interiors for People with Dementia. By using this guidance new homes are now more suitable for people currently living with dementia and for those who develop the condition in the future.
 
Helping and caring for those living with dementia
Part of the Ageing Well in Northumberland programme is about bringing together local partners to help them understand and respond to the needs of all older people including people with dementia. This is done locally through training, information, activities and support to help people stay active and connected to others.
For further information on living with or caring for someone with dementia, practical advice and guidance to help shape how services are designed and delivered, click on one of the following Links:
https://www.alzheimers.org.uk/
http://www.nhs.uk/conditions/dementia-guide/pages/dementia-carers.aspx
http://www.dementiaaction.org.uk/resources/toolkits?tags%5B%5D=Toolkits&tags%5B%5D=&tags%5B%5D=&tags%5B%5D=
 

Around 35,000 people living in the North East have dementia and this is expected to rise. 
In Northumberland around 2,500 people have been diagnosed with dementia, along with many others not yet diagnosed but experiencing memory loss or other symptoms who live in the community.

The risk of developing dementia increases with age. It more often occurs in people over 65 but can affect younger people in their early to mid-50’s or 60’s. There are no obvious physical signs that show someone has dementia or memory problems. If you or someone you know is worried about their memory, encourage them to contact their GP for advice.

Dementia is progressive so the effects get worse over time. However many people with dementia lead active and fulfilling lives for many years. It can’t be cured yet but can be slowed down and people helped to live with it. To do this they need the communities in which they live to be aware of dementia, inclusive of people living with dementia, and that businesses and services support customers with dementia.

In Northumberland we want to promote dementia awareness and develop partnerships to support people to get an early diagnosis and be able to continue to live safe and fulfilling lives in familiar surroundings.

By working together with partners we can all help to make our towns and villages more understanding and supportive of people experiencing some of the difficulties associated with having dementia. 

People with dementia tell us they want to be able to feel safe and able to continue to live in their own homes, which are familiar to them for as long as possible. To help with this, all new housing developments in Northumberland consider how to best support people with dementia. The University of Stirling’s Dementia Services Development Centre has produced guidance for professionals including Designing Interiors for People with Dementia. By using this guidance new homes are now more suitable for people currently living with dementia and for those who develop the condition in the future.

Part of the Ageing Well in Northumberland programme is about bringing together local partners to help them understand and respond to the needs of all older people including people with dementia. This is done locally through training, information, activities and support to help people stay active and connected to others.

For further information on living with or caring for someone with dementia, practical advice and guidance to help shape how services are designed and delivered, click on one of the following Links:

• https://www.alzheimers.org.uk/
• http://www.nhs.uk/conditions/dementia-guide/pages/dementia-carers.aspx
• http://www.dementiaaction.org.uk/resources/toolkits