Family Carer Support Service

31/01/2024

We regret to announce that the Family Carer Support Service will be closing on 2 February 2024.

You can still keep up to date with us on our Hft page here: Hft

You can also find a number of useful resources to provide support in the absence of the Family Carer Support Service here: https://www.hft.org.uk/our-services/family-carer-support-service/

We are proud of the help and support our Family Carer Support Service has been able to provide over the years. We deeply appreciate the opportunity to have supported you, and we extend our best wishes to you and the people you support for the future 💜

If you have a relative or friend with a learning disability and would like support and information, Hft’s free Family Carer Support Service can help.

13/11/2023

Regretfully, FCSS is currently unable to accept new support referrals. We can provide our guides for family carers on the Care Act 2014, the Mental Capacity Act 2005, disability-related Money Matters and signpost to other services that may be able to help.

Access free information, resources and guidance covering a range of topics relevant to family carers.

10/11/2023

Baroness Hollins has released her report on people with a learning disability and/or autistic people who are being detained in hospital. The report condemns the government’s failure to end this “inhumane treatment" of vulnerable young people and adults.

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06/11/2023

"When the system fails, it is people with learning disabilities and their families who pay a high price, with little or no accountability by those responsible- so the apologies and acknowledgement that breaches of human rights occurred for Ben, and for our mother, are important to us."

A landmark legal claim settlement has been achieved on behalf of a mother and her son who was subjected to a regime of abuse and harm at a care home called Veilstone in Devon.

03/11/2023

The Department for Health and Social Care has launched a £42.6 million Accelerating Reform Fund (ARF) that aims to boost the quality and accessibility of adult social care by supporting innovation and introducing changes in services for unpaid carers. https://www.scie.org.uk/innovation/accelerating-reform-fund

01/11/2023

The Housing Support Fund is aimed at anyone who’s vulnerable or cannot pay for essentials. You do not have to be getting benefits to get help. If you get benefits, they will not be affected if you get a payment from a Household Support Fund scheme.

Help you can get from your council’s Household Support Fund if you cannot afford to pay for essentials like energy bills and food.

30/10/2023

The consultation on changes to the Work Capability Assessment closes at 11:59 PM today. Have you say here:

This consultation seeks views on changes to the activities and descriptors in the Work Capability Assessment.

24/10/2023

IPSEA has produced this ‘Refusal to assess’ pack, providing advice for parents and carers appealing to the Special Educational Needs and Disability Tribunal.

IPSEA is frequently contacted about local authorities (“LAs”) refusing to carry out EHC needs assessments. These are the most common type of appeal. We have created a refusal to assess pack which gives a detailed guide to preparing for and carrying out a refusal to assess appeal. Th...

23/10/2023

The Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) has been told by a tribunal to release a secret, high-level report that is likely to expose the flaws in the support it provides to “vulnerable” claimants of universal credit.

The Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) has been told by a tribunal to release a secret, high-level report that is likely to expose the flaws in the support it provides to “vulnerable” claimants…

20/10/2023

Say today – new research calls time on learning disability and autism hate crime.

New research from Dimensions exposes that negative attitudes and behaviours towards people with learning disabilities and autism remain alarmingly present in the UK. In response, we are launching the campaign to reduce instances of hate crime, and to support people who experience...

19/10/2023

These resources aim to support the creation of a local housing protocol to help autistic people and people with a learning disability who are in mental health hospitals to be discharged into housing that meets their needs.

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