Older man and woman

Support for Carers

Carers look after family, partners, or friends who need help because they are ill, frail, or have a disability. The care they provide is unpaid. This includes adults looking after other adults, parent carers looking after disabled children, and young carers under 18 years of age looking after siblings, parents, or other relatives.' (Carers' UK).

Do you look after someone?

Do you look after an elderly, frail, or disabled friend or relative who could not manage without you? Is this care unpaid?

In Surrey, we commission a universal support offer for carers to access:

Register as a carer

Why register?

Different types of help and support are available to you as a carer. Once registered as a carer with your GP, access and referral to schemes and local services become much more straightforward.

How to register

​​​​​​​Complete the GP Carer Registration Form available from your GP surgery, and hand it in at reception. You can also register as an unpaid carer on your GP Practice website.

Making a referral to adult social care

If you are a health or care professional, including GPs and nurses, you can make a carers referral for adult social care and support via Surrey County Council adult social care.

Independent Carers Lead for Surrey Heartlands, Sue Tresman, urges local Surrey residents to consider if they are an unpaid carer, and if so, to come forward and register for support services available to Surrey unpaid carers.

  • Action for Carers Surrey – Surrey-wide services support all carers through various services, including Adult Carers Support, Young Carers Service and Moving and Handling.
  • Carer's Allowance online application system | Gov.uk – Carer's Allowance benefits people aged 16 and over who look after someone with substantial caring needs.
  • Carers UK – the UK's only national membership charity for carers, Carers UK is a support network and a movement for change.
  • Connect to Support Surrey – developed with partners to help local residents, and professionals working across health and care, access essential information about care and support.
  • Crossroads Care Surrey – Crossroads Care offer carer replacement breaks and End of Life Carer replacement breaks. Crossroads Care also provide the Carer Emergency Planning service and Carers Card.
  • Dementia support services | Surrey County Council – support for local dementia carers.  
  • Family Voice Surrey – parent carers can find additional support through Family Voice Surrey. This forum allows parents to offer a robust and collective voice and network with others.
  • Flu jab for carers | NHS.uk – if you care for someone who is elderly, frail or disabled, speak to your GP about having a flu jab along with the person you care for.
  • Home equipment finder | Surrey County Council – suggestions of things you can buy if you struggle with daily tasks like remembering to take medication, preparing a meal, washing or dressing or moving around your home.
  • Jointly app – working across different platforms (online, iOS and Android) and devices, the Jointly app is a central place where carers can store important information about the person they are looking after and share this information with other family members involved in the care. Jointly combines several valuable features, including group messaging, calendar, task allocation and medication management.
  • Looking after family or friends | Surrey County Council – Essential information for unpaid carers in Surrey.
  • Mobilise Online Surrey – online support for unpaid carers.
  • NHS Social care and support guide | NHS.uk – a step-by-step guide to the practical help, support and advice on offer and how to get it, including how to look after someone.
  • Surrey Independent Living Charity – provides information to enable people to live more independently. They also offer information for carers, such as the GP Carer Personal Health Budget (PHB).

Young adult carers are people aged 16 to 25 who care, unpaid, for a family member or friend with an illness or disability, mental health condition or an addiction.

  • Carer Smart – offers, benefits and discounts are available exclusively for carers and people with care needs.
  • Carers Trust: Know Your Rights – young and adult carers in England have the right to information and to assess the support they need from the council. This guide explains what those rights are. It also tells you what should happen when you talk to the council about being a young carer or young adult carer.

A young carer is someone under 18 who helps look after someone in their family, or a friend, who is ill, disabled or misuses drugs or alcohol.

  • Carers Trust: Know Your Rights – young and young adult carers in England have the right to information and assess the support they need from the council. This guide explains what those rights are. It also tells you what should happen when you talk to the council about being a young carer or young adult carer.
  • Surrey Young Carers – if you are a young carer looking after a family member, there is a site for you, including their latest newsletter.
  • Military Young Carers | X – follow on X for updates on how Military Young Carers can access support in Surrey.

The feelings that carers experience as they go through their caring journey can be some of the most confusing and overwhelming they will ever encounter. For many, family and friends can help 'lend an ear' and be an invaluable resource in unburdening the emotional stresses that are caring invariably brings; the important thing is for the carer to have access to someone they can 'off load' to.

It's important to know that there are other options available, though. Confidential support offered by the local carers' services is an excellent place to start, but for some, having a professional counsellor may be a preferred option.

Counselling can help make sense of the role carers have, whether in specific areas such as dealing with bereavement or separation from a loved one or with the more general feelings of stress, anxiety, and depression.

If you are a carer and would like to explore the option of speaking to a counsellor, please talk to your GP in the first instance. Alternatively, the following organisations can provide help and guidance to find a counsellor local to where you live:

Resources and training for health professionals who support carers in Surrey

Employers, teachers, GPs, nurses and other professionals who contact carers and young carers during the working day can get support and training from the Action for Carers Surrey website.

Remember, you aren't on your own. Kim Jacobs, Surrey Joint Carers Programme Manager, will be happy to advise. You can email her at kim.jacobs@nhs.net