What is available for me as a carer?

  • Carers Guernsey

    • Carers Guernsey provides emotional and practical support for carers. For more information see Carers Guernsey wesbite or call (01481) 266331.

  • Short breaks service:

    • Adults
    • The short breaks service offers carers a break from the ongoing responsibility of caring for an ill, frail or disabled adult who is being looked after at home, by providing a short stay in a Residential or Nursing Home, Extra Care facility or Hospital for the cared-for person according to need.
    • For more information please follow the link to the short breaks service or call the respite coordinator on 01481 220000 ext 3133.
    • For individuals with a learning difficulty please contact the Adult Disability Team on 01481 222000 or follow the link to the adult disability services
    • Children
    • The Croft provides a short break (respite) service for children and young people with disabilities.
    • Referrals for short break care can be made by any professional working with the child and their family.
    • For further information please contact The Croft on tel: 01481 258487

  • Charity Support

    • Some of the charities in Guernsey may provide support with a sitting service therefore it would be useful to make contact with a relevant charity.
    • Follow the link to Charity Support Networks

  • Financial support

    • Being a carer for someone is not always an easy role to fulfil by yourself and you may need some extra help.
    • Follow the link to information about financial support financial support
    • As a carer you may be entitled to a Carer's Allowance. This is a  weekly benefit for people caring for someone on Severe Disability Benefit. Carers must meet certain criteria and the allowance is subject to an upper limit on household income. For further information and the right forms to complete please see follow this link.
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Work and Caring

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  • Thinking of leaving work

    • Whilst some people feel that leaving work is the best option for them when a family member needs care or support, it may not be the only option. Sometimes people leave work to care for a family member or friend and it is only later that they realise what they have lost by leaving. If you haven't already thought about some of the following, it may be worth thinking through or talking to someone about these points in order to help you better understand what decisions you are making:
    • If you do feel that you need to care full-time and are considering leaving work it may be worth a discussion with your employer or HR department about whether any of the following could be alternative options to resignation:
      • A career break or sabbatical - this would allow you to return to your role at a later date
      • Voluntary redundancy - if your employer is looking to make redundancies this may offer a better financial option for you than resignation.
      • Early retirement - this may give you access to some pension income (if you have a work pension) which could make your finances easier to manage whilst caring.
    • If you are looking for information and advice on employment rights and best practice in the workplace the Employment and Equal Opportunities Service may be able to assist.
    • You may wish to seek advice or information about caring and your work options from the Citizen's Advice Bureau or Health Connections.
    • You may be entitled to some financial support in relation to your caring role that could help you manage the financial aspects of leaving work or working less  - see "Thinking through your finances" below.
    • It may be possible to adjust your working hours or the kind of work you do to make this more compatible with your caring role. For example, you might want to think about whether it is possible to change role or position at work to something which can accommodate flexible working or part-time hours - see "combining working and caring" below.
    • Who else can help you?
    • Do you want to be able to work as well as care? What would your best option look like?
    • Does work help you to maintain your independence and sense of 'self'?
    • How long will you be out of work for? Could your career break end up being longer than you expect? Will taking a career break have a long term impact on your career or your skills that will make it hard to return later?
    • Will you miss the friendship or companionship of your colleagues? Do you have other routine social contact?
    • How will leaving work affect your pension and retirement savings? Will you still be able to make contributions for your old age pension?
    • How will leaving work affect your income? Does this have any impact on your rent, mortgage, relationships or your dependents? What could you do to manage this?

  • Thinking through your finances

    • You can find out more about the benefits which might be available to support you in the 'Tell me about financial support' section.
    • You can receive Carer's Allowance and work at the same time providing that your household income remains below the upper threshold and that you continue to meet the eligibility for Carer's Allowance, which includes caring for 35 hours a week. However, you cannot currently claim Carer's Allowance at the same time as Sickness Benefit or Unemployment Benefit. More information is available in the Severe Disability Benefit & Carer's Allowance leaflet here.
    • You may wish to speak to your private pension provider, your mortgage provider or an independent financial adviser about how to manage your long-term financial commitments whilst caring.
    • Some benefits (including sickness benefit and unemployment benefit) and your Old Age Pension can only be claimed by people who have paid a certain amount of Social Security Contributions. The amount you receive when you claim may also be affected by the number of contributions you have paid. Whether or not you work whilst caring may affect your eligibility:
      • If you claim Carer's Allowance you will get a credit towards your Social Security Contributions which will mean that you maintain your contributions towards your Old Age Pension and your eligibility to benefits such as unemployment or sickness benefits without needing to pay.
      • If you work you will be paying these contributions from your earnings.
      • If you leave work and are not eligible for or do not claim Carer's Allowance you will be classed as 'non-employed' for Social Security Contributions, you can contribute towards your pension and some other benefits but not to sickness benefit or unemployment benefit.
        • If you have income over a certain lower income limit threshold you will be required to pay contributions on a certain percent of your income.
        • If your income is less than the lower income limit threshold then you will have the option of paying a minimum weekly rate of contributions towards your States old age pension. If you do not pay this it may have an impact on the amount of pension you receive once you have passed State Pension Age.
    • You can find out more about your States old age pension online here or phone (01481) 222500. You can find out more about Social Security Contributions here or phone (01481) 222500  

  • Combining working and caring

    • If you are already in work, your employer may be able to support you to remain in work. Some employers already have company policies about supporting people who care for family or friends. It might be worth discussing your situation with your line manager, HR department, union or staff association representative to understand if any support is available.
    • Depending on the type of work you do, it may be possible to ask for a flexible working arrangement to help you to balance your work and care responsibilities. This could include (but is not limited to):
      • Flexible start and finish times
      • Compressed working hours (where you work less days but for longer each day)
      • Annualised hours (where you work a certain number of hours over a year but work longer hours some weeks and shorter hours others)
      • Job sharing or part time working
      • Home or remote working
      • Phased retirement (you may be able to reduce your hours and possibly even receive some of your occupational pension if you are close to State Pension Age but do not want full retirement yet)
    • In some cases it might be possible for your employer to modify your role so that what you do is more compatible with your needs as a carer (perhaps they could find a role that allows you to be more flexible in your hours, for example). Varying your hours or role will not always be possible. In some circumstances, you might feel leaving your current job to find a job that is more compatible with your caring role could help you.
    • If you are looking for information and advice on employment rights and best practice in the workplace the Employment and Equal Opportunities Service may be able to assist. 

  • Care support whilst you are at work

    • Community services may be able to provide services in your own home or at a day centre to help with the care and support needs of the person you are looking after. As well as assessing the needs of the person you are supporting you are entitled to an assessment of your needs in your own right as a carer. For further information contact Adult Community Services on Tel: 01481 220000 
    • Contacting you in an emergency
    • A Life line telephone system can assist someone to call for help. Pressing a button on a telephone or a wearable pendant will put them directly through to an operator who will either call an ambulance or a named contact. For more information contact Sure on (01481) 700700 or the Lifeline services at the Princess Elizabeth Hospital. 01481 220000

  • Going back to work after a career break

    • The Job Centre is a good place to start looking for work. You can contact the team at the Job Centre who will be able to help you identify what support might be available for you to get back into work
    • Careers Guernsey provides careers support.For more information follow the link Careers Guernsey website or phone (01481) 226565 or emailing careersguernsey@gov.gg.
    • Recruitment agencies might also be able to provide you with some advice or help.