Over the past couple of weeks I have been asked on a few occassions ,"My Transport for my disabled child to school has been stopped "!!!!
The first time I heard something was a friend whose son is 17 years of age had been told that from his 19th birthday untill he left school they would have to pay for transport ???
Then last week at my local carers drop in, the team leader asked me if I`d heard anything because she had a mum who was distraught about her daughter having to pay for transport to school and she was 17 years old ???
Well on talking to my friend it seems the goal posts have changed, and children in special education are having to pay for school transport from the age of 16 years .... she is so stressed and upset .They live 7 miles from the school and it will cost the family £40 per day for a taxi with an escort ... my friend doesn`t drive and her son is totally unable to make his own way on public transport.
Is this only happening in Cheshire ??? or is it country wide??
And the best bit is the parents have been notified during the summer hols ,and with effect from the September start of term ... how calous !!! But there has been no general meetings to consult families at all !!Surely that isn`t right ??
Monday, 27 August 2012
Friday, 17 August 2012
The Best Of Men
If you didn`t watch the drama last night "The Best Of Men " on BBC 2 , try and catch it on iplayer,It was absolutely fabulous.
It started in 1944 in a spinal unit within a hospital named "Stoke Manderville ".
It took you on a journey of how people were treated with mobility problems or who were paralysed from spinal injury and the transformation from one doctor and his contraversal methods to some of the physiotherapy we use today, and of course the birth of the paralympics in 1948.
What a fitting start to the build up for the paralympics ,I`m sure we are in for some fantastic sport in the next few weeks :)
It started in 1944 in a spinal unit within a hospital named "Stoke Manderville ".
It took you on a journey of how people were treated with mobility problems or who were paralysed from spinal injury and the transformation from one doctor and his contraversal methods to some of the physiotherapy we use today, and of course the birth of the paralympics in 1948.
What a fitting start to the build up for the paralympics ,I`m sure we are in for some fantastic sport in the next few weeks :)
Tuesday, 14 August 2012
Carers meetings
I have for many years been a frequent visitor to our Carers support group where the main office is six miles away from where I live, not a problem as such but means it is an effort to go and maybe result in only going now and then as I did.But just by pure chance I happened to find out that there is a "Drop- in" session once a week in the village where I live,so now regularly on a Tuesday morning I am a familiar face and getting to know other regular faces and having a chat over coffee and as the saying goes "a problem shared is a problem halfed ".It is so important to have contact with other carers for support to each other and a means of finding out information about services available to you as a carer and for those you care for whether it be financial in the form of benefits or provision of equipment for mobility or around the home.
Below are links to websites that help carers :
http://www.wired.me.uk/
http://www.carers.org/
Below are links to websites that help carers :
http://www.wired.me.uk/
http://www.carers.org/
Monday, 13 August 2012
As one door closes another door opens
Well what a two weeks it has been.I`m not a big sports fan and wasn`t that bothered about the olympics when it started two weeks ago ... but was taken along with the flow and really enjoyed all that I watched on T.V .Our athletes did us proud with 65 medals and 3rd in the league table, well done to all who participated and I now look forward to the start of the Paraolympics :)
Tuesday, 3 July 2012
Leavers Ceremony - so special
Well here we are in July, typically the month we think about the end of the school year.Well I think about the "Leavers Ceremony " where Cheshire Council holds a very special ceremony for school leavers in special education within Cheshire.
It takes me back to 2004 when our daughter left school aged 19 years.The ceremony is held at Chester Cathederal which is a fantastic place set in the heart of Chester city centre.
It is a grand affair and posh frocks and hats are the order of the day,excitement from pupils ,staff and family fill the air.
The pupils are presented with a "National Record Of Achievement " which is a beautiful bound book with all sorts of photos and information of school years which will follow the young person into adult life.It is a lovely diary of school years to keep and look back on.
It is a very proud day for all involved, in many ways it replaces the Graduation Day that most pupils going through main stream school will experience,there are so many "special " occasions that families of children with disabilities miss out on and something like this is so "special " just as they are.
I do hope that councils where you live do something "special" as well :)
It takes me back to 2004 when our daughter left school aged 19 years.The ceremony is held at Chester Cathederal which is a fantastic place set in the heart of Chester city centre.
It is a grand affair and posh frocks and hats are the order of the day,excitement from pupils ,staff and family fill the air.
The pupils are presented with a "National Record Of Achievement " which is a beautiful bound book with all sorts of photos and information of school years which will follow the young person into adult life.It is a lovely diary of school years to keep and look back on.
It is a very proud day for all involved, in many ways it replaces the Graduation Day that most pupils going through main stream school will experience,there are so many "special " occasions that families of children with disabilities miss out on and something like this is so "special " just as they are.
I do hope that councils where you live do something "special" as well :)
Wednesday, 27 June 2012
News Spotlight
It is a hard decission to make .. to give up your career to care for a family member who is elderly,sick,or disabled.
For me it was the only decission and one I never regretted.
Today I came across this article and thought I would like to share it.
Unpaid carers cost economy £5.3bn
Carers who give up work to look after
others cost England's economy about £5.3bn a year, the charity Age UK says.
With the present care system 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.
The government says its white paper on social care is "imminent"
and will include changes to "transform care".
For many people,
caring for a loved one is second nature and they wouldn't have it any other way.
"But carers should never be forced to sacrifice their own financial security
and wellbeing due to the lack of service provision and support from public
services.
A Department of Health spokesman said: "We agree that helping people to stay
in work alongside caring not only helps carers' careers and family finances but
is crucial for our workforce and economy.
"The government has committed to working together with the business community
to help carers manage work and care.
The Age UK analysis in April, adding in loss of wages to previously
calculated loss from tax revenues and claimed carers' allowance.
Loss of earnings was estimated using three surveys: the carers survey - to
examine the proportion of male to female, part-time to full-time carers, the
labour-force survey - to calculate average earnings, and the population
estimate.
On Tuesday the Local Government Association warned the rising cost of adult
social care could "soak up" almost all of council spending by 2020.
Currently, £14.6bn is spent on adult social care services in England.
Last year the economist Andrew Dilnot was asked by ministers to look at how
funding could be changed. The Dilnot Commission recommended the means-testing
threshold for those needing residential care be increased to £100,000. It also
called for a partnership whereby individuals pay the first chunk of their care.
It recommended a cap of between £25,000 and £50,000.
Wales and Northern Ireland both have means-tested systems similar to that in
England.
Scotland provides free personal care, but in recent years has started
tightening the eligibility criteria for the same reasons councils in England
have.
Thursday, 21 June 2012
Carers Conference 2012
As part of National Carers Week our local authority held the annual Carers Conference which I attended yesterday.
It was very informative and well attended.
Some of the top directors from our services from the borough council were there and open for question time within the conference and also whilst having a coffee break, it was a great opportunity for bringing up issues that maybe affect just you or things which you feel could help everyone in the community.
The thing that was disscussed that I felt was of particular interest was the Clinical Commissioning Group.I pressume all local authoritys will have set one up ready for when the GP`s run thier own budgets, that is a question that I didn`t think to ask yesterday !! please correct me if this is wrong ...It must be a good thing that all the NHS ,Council and voluntary groups meet and all work together for the good of the people of thier borough.
Another very interesting talk was given by the Care Quality Commission about the work that they do to make sure that authorities and companies who provide services in the clients own home meet standards made by the government.
http://www.warringtonccg.nhs.uk/
http://www.cqc.org.uk/
There were work shops on offer and the one I decided to attend was "mind over matter ".The emphasis was on taking five minutes out of caring and feelgood factors to do in those five minutes .On the list which took my eye :
It was very informative and well attended.
Some of the top directors from our services from the borough council were there and open for question time within the conference and also whilst having a coffee break, it was a great opportunity for bringing up issues that maybe affect just you or things which you feel could help everyone in the community.
The thing that was disscussed that I felt was of particular interest was the Clinical Commissioning Group.I pressume all local authoritys will have set one up ready for when the GP`s run thier own budgets, that is a question that I didn`t think to ask yesterday !! please correct me if this is wrong ...It must be a good thing that all the NHS ,Council and voluntary groups meet and all work together for the good of the people of thier borough.
Another very interesting talk was given by the Care Quality Commission about the work that they do to make sure that authorities and companies who provide services in the clients own home meet standards made by the government.
http://www.warringtonccg.nhs.uk/
http://www.cqc.org.uk/
There were work shops on offer and the one I decided to attend was "mind over matter ".The emphasis was on taking five minutes out of caring and feelgood factors to do in those five minutes .On the list which took my eye :
- putting makeup on
- having a shower
- being with animals
- doing your hair
- sitting in the sun
- listening to music
- watching people
- smiling
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