E. Priority: assessment and support

Outcome: Young and adult carers have a consistent offer to preventative, personalised and strength-based assessment and support

Actions will include:

• We will ensure a consistent approach to carers assessments is adopted by Adult Social Care and that the whole workforce is equipped and has the knowledge to support carers.
• We will ensure the carer is able to make an informed decision about how their assessment is undertaken and whether this is face to face.
• We will continue to develop our carer offer to be focussed on prevention, reducing and delaying needs arising and avoiding crisis.
• Where an assessment identifies eligible needs, we will look to meet these with support from the carer’s own network or local community including preventive, universal services.
• We will improve understanding with carers and professionals of our current carers self-directed support offer, called carers direct payments, and make sure they are accessible to everyone who is eligible.
• We will work holistically with young carers through the assessment process looking at the wider impact of their caring role on their education, health and wellbeing and future aspirations and ensure they have access to ongoing, appropriate support such as peer support groups, one to one support or counselling.
• Improve our assessment pathways for parent carers whose child is preparing for adulthood and for young carers approaching adulthood.

We will measure delivery of this outcome through:

• Reviewing audits of our strength-based practice carer assessments.
• Carer feedback on their experience of assessment by First Contact Team and timeliness of assessments.
• Number of young carers accessing support from Staffordshire Together for Carers.
• Uptake of one-off direct payments.