Policy formulation

Guidance for anyone who cares, unpaid, for a friend or family member who cannot cope without their support. This may be because they have a lifelong condition, illness, disability, serious injury, mental health condition or an addiction. 

The authors review current research on provision of services to older people and their carers in remote and rural areas across the UK, with specific reference to Scotland. They consider the policy implications for dementia services in this context.

The National Black Carers and Carers Workers Network aims to ensure that the voices of carers from black and minority ethnic groups are heard. This article provides a brief overview of the work and main concerns of the Network.

Unpaid carers of adults, as a group, have, until recently, been largely neglected by the EU. While a number of provisions of EU law – including anti-discrimination measures and protections for part time workers – may benefit (some) carers of adults in the workplace, the existing package of work–life balance regulation falls well short of a coherent approach to addressing the needs of this group.

Carers are a high-profile group in Gordon Brown’s government. Despite this, the degree to which they are considered in mainstream policies varies. Undoubtedly, some policies offer immense help to carers but others appear to be working against them.The article calls for a more cohesive policy for carers which takes into account the needs of the whole family, especially children. Young carers often miss school to look after parents, but are usually overlooked by policymakers.

The term leadership has been often applicable within the work domain, where development programmes are aimed at managers and lead organisations. However the government has recognised that changes in public services require the collaboration of many stakeholders working together in partnership and has placed at the core of its policies the need to include users and carers.

Examines whether carers could be successfully brought to the scope of tax credit schemes. The article explains how tax credits work, and looks at the advantages and disadvantages of providing tax credits for carers.

Baroness [Jill] Pitkeathley traces the development of the carers movement in the UK and assesses its impact. She concludes that it has been of vital significance in formulating and driving policy in health and social care. Its work is far from over though and a strong voice for carers will continue to be important in the future especially in view of our aging population and the pressure on health and social care budgets.

This article explores the potential impact of the mental health and mental incapacity law reforms on carers. The reform proposals anticipate a number of overlapping and at times conflicting roles for carers (including those of gatekeeper, decision-making proxy and advocate), which is suggestive of an ongoing ambivalence toward the caring role at the level of ethics, policy and strategic planning.