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Carers (Identification and Support)

I beg to move,"That leave be given to bring in a Bill to require health bodies to identify patients who are carers or who have a carer; to require identified carers to be referred to sources of help and support and to make further provision in relation to such arrangements; to make provision in relation to the responsibilities of local authorities and schools for the needs of young carers and their families; and for connected purposes." In March 2006, I introduced a Bill with the same aims as the first part of this new one. As I told the House then, 1 million carers in the UK care for more than 50 hours per week. The 2001 census figures show that carers are twice as likely to suffer ill health if they care for 50 or more hours a week. Medical research also suggests increased ill health among those caring for a person suffering from dementia or stroke disease. It is my view that we must intervene to identify and support the most hard-pressed carers, who care for more hours than the hours of any full-time job. In my Worsley constituency, the highest level of caring commitment is needed in the two wards with the highest levels of people with stroke and heart disease, and with cancer. While the national average is one in five carers caring for more than 50 hours a week, that rises to one in four in Walkden North ward in my constituency, and to one in three in Little Hulton ward. Those carers play a vital role in health and social care. They are key partners in care for the NHS, but their own health is also threatened and there is a need for recognition of carers’ health needs. In 1999, the Government gave GPs and primary health care teams a five-point checklist for use with carers in their practice population. The first requirement in the list was that GPs should identify those patients who are carers or who have a carer. Eight years on from the launch of that national strategy, research shows that the work done nationwide by GPs and primary care teams to identify carers in their practice population is still inconsistent. Research by the Princess Royal Trust for Carers concludes that only a small proportion of the total number of carers is being identified. Even GP practices with good links to their local carers’ organisations are not doing the work necessary to identify all those carers whose health might be affected by their caring responsibilities. Two carers known to Carers UK provide examples of how important it is to identify carers. Valerie Low of Carlisle cares for her husband, who was severely brain damaged in a car accident in 1997. For years, Mrs. Low did not know that advice or respite care were available to help her as a carer. Now that she has been identified, she arranges respite care from Crossroads. Tracy Barker from the Isle of Wight has cared for her son for 16 years. He has autism, asthma and epilepsy. Like many parent carers, Ms Barker did not see herself as a carer and had no idea of the support available to help her. She struggled to pay bills, yet she had not been told about carer’s allowance. Eventually, she had to move to a different area for financial reasons, and then she suffered depression. Now that she has been identified as a carer, she receives carer’s allowance and has attended a number of courses that have helped her. If they are not identified, carers will struggle without the help or support that they need. My Bill would require that primary care trusts and local health boards ensure that effective procedures exist within primary care to identify carers, and that carers are referred for advice and given regular health checks. The Pensions Bill also requires the identification of those carers caring for 20 or more hours per week so that they can earn the carer’s contribution credit. My hon. Friend the Minister for Pensions Reform has made a commitment to use the Government’s review and update of the national carers strategy as an opportunity to explore how that identification can be carried out by health and social care professionals. That is a welcome step forward. In previous years, hon. Members of all parties have given their support to carers week, which this year runs from 11 to 17 June. Its main objective is to enable new and ““hidden? carers to access support and services. Young carers are perhaps the most hidden of all carers. The 2001 census records some 175,000 young carers, but only 30,000 of them are known to young carers support services such as the Princess Royal Trust for Carers and other children’s charities. Indeed, a survey by NCH and Carers UK showed that fewer than one in five of known young carers have received an assessment of any kind. The Princess Royal Trust for Carers believes that it is likely that the most vulnerable young carers, including some of the 13,000 who care for more than 50 hours a week, continue their caring role throughout their childhood without any support. Young carers may have parents with substance misuse or alcohol problems, and the extent of that problem is not fully understood. The ““Hidden Harm? report estimated that 250,000 to 350,000 children have parents with serious substance misuse problems. The alcohol harm reduction strategy for England states that between 800,000 and 1.3 million children are affected by parental alcohol problems. In the families of alcoholics or problem drug users, children may find themselves responsible for their parents’ safety. My Bill would place duties on social services authorities to consider what support services are needed to sustain the parenting role in such families. When a parent is assessed for community care services, support services should be offered if it is found that the adult relies for support on the caring role of his or her child. In that way we can ensure that the health, education and well-being of the child or young person are not impaired by caring responsibilities. Young carers may have a parent with an illness such as multiple sclerosis, or with a learning or physical disability. The parent may rely on the care from their child, as a case known to the Princess Royal Trust for Carers illustrates. A single parent was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis and loss of mobility, which affects not only her but her children, aged 8 and 12, who have to provide her with the round-the-clock support she needs. Such children are missing out on their education and, like other young carers, they find themselves misunderstood at school, treated as truants and bullied by other children. Schools need written policies stating the support that they will offer young carers. My Bill would require that both schools and local authority children’s services have policies in place to support such young carers. Many health and social care professionals are frustrated by the difficulties they experience due to different thresholds for service provision for different client groups. An adult mental health worker may be aware of several children affected by their parent’s mental health condition. However, unless the children are at risk of serious harm the health professional will probably not be able to help them. The general duties to young carers and their families outlined in my Bill would help. A simple joint working protocol between children’s and adult services, combined with a training programme for staff, would help to solve the problem. Census figures tell us that a minimum of 2 per cent. of all children in the UK are young carers. However, work by Professor Saul Becker of Nottingham university and others suggests that the true number of young carers could be much higher—possibly 1 million of the 3 million children and young people who live in families where there is serious illness or disability. Whichever figure we use, we need now to bring in measures so that schools and local authorities recognise the issues faced by young carers. I have outlined how the measures in my Bill would ensure that health professionals identify carers and refer them to much needed help and support. As we move towards the Government’s review of the national strategy for carers, I hope the measures outlined in the Bill will offer a sturdy framework for improved services and support to carers. My Bill is supported by Carers UK, Contact a Family and the Princess Royal Trust for Carers. I thank Carers UK and Luke Clements for helping me to draft the Bill and Alex Fox of the Princess Royal Trust for Carers for his input on young carers. I also thank the House for giving me the opportunity to present it today. Question put and agreed to. Bill ordered to be brought in by Barbara Keeley, Tony Baldry, John Bercow, Mr. Paul Burstow, Annette Brooke, Dr. Hywel Francis, Helen Goodman, Lady Hermon, Mrs. Sharon Hodgson, Ms Diana R. Johnson, Ms Sally Keeble and Lynda Waltho.