St Teresa's Hospice
If the person you care for is being assessed by Adult Social Care, or by Children’s Services because he or she is a disabled child, as a carer you also have a right to have your needs assessed.
In addition, if you are providing "a substantial amount of care on a regular basis" to someone who refuses an assessment or provision of services, you are still entitled to an assessment of your own needs as a carer.
Your rights to assessment are explained more fully in the Helping Carers to Care Leaflet (Text version, Rich text document or Print version, PDF document, 670kb)
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Information and support about caring can also be obtained from Darlington Association on Disability's "Carers Support Service", which is open from Monday - Friday, 10am until 4pm. They are located at:
Enterprise House,
Valley Street North,
Darlington,
DL1 1GY
Tel: 01325 357533
Appointments can also be arranged outside normal working hours to fit with the needs of working carers. For further information please visit the Carers Support Service website [external link]
The Carers Support Service also operates Darlington’s Carers Register, which enables you to identify yourself as a carer. You can then receive a regular newsletter giving information about services and support. The register also gives a more accurate picture of carers in Darlington, which can be used by Health, Adult Social Care, Children's Services and other organisations to plan support for carers in Darlington. You can view the Carers Support Service newsletter on the Darlington Association on Disability website [external link]
Carers Darlington also runs a carers drop-in and details can be obtained from the Carers Support Service. For more information telephone 01325 357533.
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Carers may be eligible for for a Council Tax Carers Discount.
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St Teresa's Hospice offer support to carers of people diagnosed with a life-threatening illness. They have regular drop-in sessions where you can share your experiences with people in a similar situation to you or to simply just relax.
For more information, including when and where the group meet, you can view the Support and Information for Carers Sheet (PDF document) or the Time Out for Carers Information Sheet (PDF document)
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