Counsel and Care update new home guides

Monday, 05, Dec 2005 12:00

NEW GUIDES MEET INCREASING DEMAND FOR INFORMATION ABOUT FINDING A CARE HOME

Counsel and Care has today (5 December 2005) updated and published its hugely popular Care Home Guides.

The guides, in both brief and complete versions, provide a straightforward and clear explanation about all of the issues to consider when arranging a care home placement, with an easy to follow step-by-step approach. The guides, which were produced with funding from the Department of Health, cover the following:

• Choosing a care home

• When a local authority should fund care

• When the NHS should fund care

• Considerations for people who are funding their own care

• What to expect in a care home

• What to do if there are any problems with the care home

The Care Home Guides are an invaluable resource for those people who are arranging care for a parent or relative, and who are not sure where to begin. The guides recognise that people’s needs and financial circumstances vary enormously, and the information provided addresses these different situations.

Care Services Minister Liam Byrne said: “Moving into a care home is a key stage in the lives of many people, and it is essential that they have the right information available to them and their families to support them as they make this decision. Counsel and Care’s guide is an excellent resource which can assist older people as they take this important step.

“Ensuring that older people are well placed in the right care homes is vital for their health and well-being, as well as the peace of mind of families. Having access to clear and good quality information which explains how to achieve this is very welcome, and will help to ensure that people going into a care home get the standards of service they expect and deserve.”

Stephen Burke, Chief Executive of Counsel and Care said: “Since we first published the guides a year ago, we have been overwhelmed with requests for it and have distributed tens of thousands of copies. There is a real need for straightforward information and advice about the community care system, and care homes in particular, and Counsel and Care is well-placed to meet this demand. This guide was developed using the expertise of Counsel and Care’s advice workers and policy staff and is further informed by the requests for information we receive every day through our advice line. It means that the guides tap into all the areas which we know are issues for older people and their families looking for a care home.”