Emergency Back-Up Scheme

Carers in Crisis is a back-up scheme which helps the person you care for in an emergency, when you are suddenly unable to provide your usual support.

A 'crisis' could be anything from transport problems which delay your return home for a few hours, to more serious issues like sudden illness or an accident.

How does Carers in Crisis work?

• When you join, you'll be given the phone number of an emergency call centre which you can contact 24 hours a day, 365 days a year.
• We provide a card to carry in your purse or wallet (the size of a credit card), a key fob to add to your house keys and a reference slip to pop into a "message in a bottle" in the fridge. These all show the telephone number of the emergency call centre and your own unique reference number. No personal details are shown.
• We get together with you to agree what support would be needed in an emergency. This might mean contacting a relative or arranging help from home care staff.
• In an emergency you contact the call centre and give them your personal reference number, then staff there will take action previously agreed by you.
• If something unexpected happens, the card or fob will show you are a carer. The person finding them can contact the emergency call centre on your behalf and will be asked to give the unique reference number on the card. They will not be given any of your personal details by call centre staff.

How much does it cost?

It is free to join Carers in Crisis scheme.
There is no charge for support during the first 48 hours. After this, when we assess the situation, we will carry out a financial assessment for the person you care for. This may lead to them being asked to pay towards the cost of any longer term care.

How can I join?

Please get in touch and let us know you're interested, then we'll get together with you to explain more about the scheme and the information we need to hold.