News

  • Unpaid carers cost economy £5.3bn
    Wed, 2012-06-27 (All day)

    Carers who give up work to look after others cost England's economy about £5.3bn a year, the charity Age UK says. It says an unfit care system means people often have to give up work to help the elderly or adult disabled. The figure was calculated on the lost earnings and forgone taxes of more than 300,000 unpaid carers.

  • Wealthy are less likely to care for their elderly family
    Tue, 2012-06-05 (All day)

    The wealthy are less likely to than others to look after their elderly parents, researchers claim. More than a quarter of those who earn over £100,000 a year see their parents less than once a month and do not speak to them in the interval. And twice as many well-off individuals are ignoring their elderly relatives than those earning ordinary or below average pay, the poll found. The findings dispelled the idea that proper care for older people was simply a matter of money.

  • The age of old age
    Tue, 2012-03-27 (All day)

    1 in 3 children born today will live to be 100. This article in The Independent today discusses the fact that people are living longer and healthier but that ageism remains pervasive. Dementia will be the condition that becomes substantially more likely the older people get. Currently, affecting one in 14 people over 65, one in 6 over 80, and one in three over 90. Research has received a cash injection yesterday as David Cameron announced a 140 per cent increase in public funds by 2015.

  • What hope for ageing expats and their elderly relatives?
    Mon, 2012-03-12 (All day)

    In the UK the international watchdog Equalities and Human Rights Commission has described the neglect and abuse of elderly people in care homes as “torture” with recent reports citing that more than half of the residents in homes are denied basic care.

  • Care for elderly 'let down by fragmented system'
    Thu, 2012-02-09 (All day)

    News stories this week have highlighted the problems people face trying to navigate through mulitple services and agencies when in need of care. Some stories reported older people being 'passed like parcels' between different agencies and duplication of information requests. This is exactly what my care manager will support and help with, taking the strain of coordinating care access and delivery for the person.

  • Carers Week 2012
    Tue, 2012-01-31 (All day)

    The theme this year is 'in sickness and in health' and the week is 18-24th June 2012. my care manager encourages as many people to take part and do something to raise the profile of carers. Carers, please see www.carersweek.org and fill in an online  survey about your caring role. The week has the support of Carers UK, Marie Curie, Age UK, MS Society, Skills for Care and Macmillan Cancer Support, amongst many others.

  • Future Foundation Report
    Mon, 2012-01-09 (All day)

    A report published today by think tank Future Foundation, states that working well into our 70's will become the norm for many people, given the economic situation of many people. Retirement ages are undoubtedly already being stretched due both to people being unable to afford to give up work and the diminishing workforce caused by ongoing demographic shifts. This latest report reinforces the need for employers to consider the impact of an aging workforce, who are juggling their own needs and needs of others amidst an increasingly complex social care system.

  • 2012 for Carers
    Tue, 2012-01-03 (All day)

    With continuing difficulties in social care funding and the wider economy, the year ahead is set to be challenging for anyone with caring responsibilities. my care manager will be there to assist and support carers: through the work we do with individuals and organisations, through our engagement with national organisations committed to carer welfare and by taking part in related activities such as National Carers Week. We will keep you updated with issues and events.

  • Patients pay for their own nurses in NHS hospitals
    Mon, 2011-11-28 (All day)

    Private nurses are being hired to feed and wash elderly patients in NHS hospitals. The patients, or their relatives, are spending up to £200 per day to ensure they receive basic nursing care that health service staff fail to provide. The reports on these findings have been received with further dismay, as once again reflect the current lack of ability in the public sector to supoprt and care for a growing population.

  • Carers denied £400m meant to fund more respite breaks
    Thu, 2011-11-24 (All day)

    Britain’s five million unpaid carers are being denied millions of pounds in funding for respite breaks and support, according to a report published today. A year after the government allocated an extra £400 million for carers, research shows that spending by health authorities has fallen by £2.4 million. The report discloses that primary care trusts are ignoring government demands to reveal how much is available for carers and the basis for allocation.