The government unveiled its plans to get one million people off benefits and back to work yesterday. The plan, to ‘transform’ the lives of people currently on benefits, was launched by work and pensions minister James Purnell who said benefit claimants would have to play their part in the economy either with some form of
A poll on the pressure of being a carer has found than three out of four of them have reached breaking point. The most common cause was with the bureaucracy of accessing NHS care and benefits, but the poll found that for many the burden of the carer role was so great that some people
Following a ruling by the Employment Tribunal yesterday, millions of carers will have the right to claim against employers who discriminate against them in refusing to offer flexible working. The worker was forced to resign because she wanted to spend more time to care for her disabled son and launched a ‘discrimination by association’ claim.
Charities including Carers UK, Mencap and Alzheimers Society are among nine charities which have drawn up a carers poverty charter calling for better benefits for carers. The charities estimate that six million carers looks after family members or friends at home, but fewer than 500,000 carers actually get the allowance. They want an increase on
Meanwhile, the government is looking to recruit 60 European social workers, experienced in ‘social pedagogy’, to lead an experimental pilot programme on the way children’s residential care homes are run. The practice helps children ‘develop and flourish’, rather than just meeting their immediate needs and ensuring their safety. Child care advisers welcome the move, but