What is our position legally??
- By laura
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Fri 28 Mar 2008 01:00
I dont know i this is posted on the correct board, but i need advice.
I am the daughter f a carer, my mum has cared for her mum and her aunt for the past 18 years, although my gran died 8 years ago my nana is still going strong, however, in the past 2 years my mum has began to suffer terribly from depression etc.
It has got to the stage now that we actually fear for her mental state and believe if it continues my mum will have a complete breakdown.
The social services have now stepped in and put my Nana in respite, however, they have told my mum it is only for 2 weeks and then she HAS to take her back.
When we took my nana to the care home they said they were told 2 weeks to permanent and that my mum did not need to take her back.My mum is in Sth Lanarkshire, so falls under Scots Law and the only documents i can find relate to English law and carers rights.
I was of the impression that now that my mum is no longer fit or capable of looking after my nana that it was the social works job to step in?
Had my mum not stepped in 18 years ago they would have had to look after them for that length of time, but now my mum needs to get her health back or we will be burying her before my nana.
What is the truth?
How do we do it?My brother even told the social work that my mum would not be ft to take nana back at which point the social worker said that it would then be up to the family to care for my nana.
I live 450 miles away, Nana requires 24 hour attention, she is not an invalid but cant handle being left in the house alone, is too frail to use the kitchen (she is 94) and is deaf. My mum gave up work to care for them 18 years ago and I would need to do the same.
Please help
Laura
Replies
- By stevens mum
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Re: What is our position legally??
Fri 28 Mar 2008 21:55Hi Laura
I'm sorry to hear about your situation, there's not much I can suggest apart from DEMAND a meeting with Social services and any other people involved in your Nana's care. Explain the situation and tell them that your Mum is not capable of caring for her Mum due to her problems and explain your situation to them.
Social services always try to get the family to care for another family member it's policy and it happened to my Step mum when her sister and brother in law were sick, the brother in law passed away leaving the wife alone, social services tried to palm her off on the family but my step mum pointed out thast she was 70 and just can't care for her. Social services finally gave in after my step mum came home in tears and my Dad called them in a rage.
She got carers for 8 months and finally got a place in sheltered houseing.
just fight Social services all the way and never give in to them
I wish you tyhe best of luck
Give them HELL
Shelley
xx
- By goddess57
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Re: What is our position legally??
Fri 4 Apr 2008 14:30Hi Laura,
Sorry to read this and see what you to are going through ,there isnt much support and Social Services seem to rely on the familys to step in and make things easy for them.I to don,t understand why everything you have to do is fight to get the Rights for the ones that need the care.I wish you the best and that you get the proper help you need.bye for now .caroline.
- By laura
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Re: What is our position legally??
Fri 4 Apr 2008 22:43Many thanks to everyone for the advice.
Nana was given 2 weeks respite and with the help and advice of the nuring home it had been arranged as permenant.
As for social services, they don't seem to know their a*** from their elbow, one minute its all positive and we can see a future that will work for everyone and the next they take it away and suggest maybe my mum could have her back as she "isn't settling" although the home tell us she is making friends, still adjusting but slowly becoming involved.
I never realised how hard it was for my mum ( and everyone else who cares for someone else).
Can i just say thank you to you all - people like yourselves make the world a better place for everyone and deserve to be appreciated and rewarded.
- By lizzie_T
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Re: What is our position legally??
Wed 9 Apr 2008 19:52I was interested in some of the comments made because it just reminds me of our position. I think I explained when we were taken to court by the county for not paying bills for care we did not want as we had our own, but at the time I had raised a mortgage to provide ground floor accommodation for us and the S>S> thought we had plenty of money and inflicted themselves on us. Despite not even starting to pay they would not stop and it was three years before they finally got the message and left. Now of course, knowing we have none after all, there was absolutely no response when the attic tank burst or when George came home sick from that nursing home.
Your posts seem to prove what I knew all along - they chase money like lawyers chase ambulances!
I have noticed that now instead of Social Services - I think they got fedup with us calling them S>S> in emails, the title has changed to Social and Community Services - do they really think it changes things? I would think that the easiest degree to get is the social work one, because the laws change so often that you can virtually work by using the computer and look up what to do - from the workers angle of course. I wonder how much is spent on the salaries in comparison? Has anyone asked through the freedom of information act?
- By Margaret Jean
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Re: What is our position legally??
Wed 9 Apr 2008 21:39Laura, and Lizzie, I am sorry to hear the problems you have both had. If your carees were referred by the hospital social worker, then the SS would have had to take over. That goes for Mum's state of health, as well. Ask your Doctor for help if you are having further problems with that. As for being asked to pay, it is not up to the family, unless they are in command of the caree's finances via Power of Attorney. Care fees should be based on the individual's ability to pay,and social security do have arrangements with the local authority for this. My Grandmother was in a home for ten years, and we had to make friends with the home owners because the SS would not pay as much as the fees went up each year. The home owners should have a way of dealing with this problem. You can give POA to the local authority, but you have to allow them access to savings as well as pension, so it is a swings and roundabouts situation.
Hope this helps.