Main Content Jump to Footer

Elizabeth Nuffield Educational Fund

‘Care Matters’. A guide to the Carers (Equal Opportunities) Act 2004

Mon, 19 February 2007

Published in May 2007, this guide explains the responsibilities and duties of local authorities in the light of recent legislation and proposes strategies to help them meet their new obligations to carers.

Adult learners who are caring for a disabled child or other family member face continuing challenges over accessing the support they need. The publication by ENEF in 2005 of A guide for adult learners with caring responsibilities raised awareness of their problems. It also coincided with the implementation of the Carers (Equal Opportunities) Act 2004, and it became clear that many local authorities were not fully conversant with their duties to include, within the Carers’ Assessment process, family carers’ wishes to learn or work.

The aims of this new guide, therefore, are:

• to raise the profile of adult learners with caring responsibilities across local government and in further and adult education;
• to consider the implications of the Carers (Equal Opportunities) Act 2004 and related legislation;
• to explore positive strategies for the achievement of equality of opportunity;
• to raise the profile of this group within the local authorities wider duties, e.g. development of Children’s Centres, Extended Schools, accessible leisure services, use of Carers’ Grant and related Carers’ Strategy; and
• to address the interface between local authority delivery of social care with other agencies, e.g. Children’s Information Services, JobCentre Plus, further and adult education providers.

The guide contains a number of case studies to illustrate the points raised, and a list of useful organisations for further information.

Care Matters was commissioned by the Elizabeth Nuffield Educational Fund (ENEF) and was written by Dr Philippa Russell, Disability Rights Commissioner. It has been produced with the help of local authorities, education and training providers and family carers and disability organisations at local and national level.

You can download a copy of the guide by clicking here. Limited hard copies are from:

Elizabeth Nuffield Educational Fund
28 Bedford Square
London WC1B 3JS

tel: 020 7631 0566_
email: enef@nuffieldfoundation.org

You are welcome to put a link on your own website to this page or to the guide.

Further information:

National Children's Bureau (NCB): promotes the interests of children and young people
Daycare Trust: information on all aspects of childcare
Contact-a-Family: supports families with disabled children
Carers Uk: supports carers
Directgov: Disabled people: links to information for disabled people and their carers
Carers (Equal Opportunities) Act 2004

Last Updated Mon, 14 May 2007