Robinson, Catherine

Since the early 1990s, UK social care policy has committed to supporting carers. Legislation (England and Wales) over this time period has recognised the importance of separate carer assessments that take into account an individual's ability and willingness to care. This paper considers carer assessment from the perspective of social care practitioners. It reports on qualitative data from a carer research programme that spans over 20 years (1993 to present) and includes 383 in-depth interviews with social care practitioners across England and Wales.

Young carers of people with mental health problems are highly hidden, ostracised and vulnerable. To make matters worse, many professionals from the social, health and education sectors are not fully aware of the difficulties and central issues facing young carers of people with mental health problems. In order to make young carers of people with mental health problems more visible and to explore gaps in need and good practice from the perspectives of professionals, 65 participants were interviewed. The sample included professionals from the social, healthcare and voluntary sectors.

Diane Seddon and Catherine Robinson describe their study looking at the first-hand experiences of family carers who also have paid employment.