Help and support for carers in Islington

What makes you a carer

You could be looking after someone who is a family member, partner or friend. You might be giving support as they cannot cope without it because of their:

• illness
• long-term health conditions,
• frailty
• physical or learning disability
• mental health
• addiction.

Support could be doing some shopping and paying the bills a few hours a week. Or it might be doing everything for the person you are supporting, including personal care.

You may call yourself a carer, or an informal, family or unpaid carer. But you may not see yourself this way either.

If you are in a caring position like this, you may want to look through our help and support.

Islington Carers Hub

Islington Carers Hub provides advice, information and support to all carers aged 18 or over who live or work in Islington or care for someone 18 or over living in Islington.

The Hub acts as a one-stop-shop for carers in the borough and offers up to two years of support for people once their caring role has ended. Islington Carers Hub also provides strategic leadership on carers’ issues across our health, social care, private and voluntary sectors.

Support includes:

• advice, information and support on a variety of important issues for carers such as Housing, Finances, Health and Wellbeing, employment and more
• activities, get togethers and support groups
• short breaks
• training and workshops
• opportunities to meet new people
• support for the person you look after.

More information, advice and guidance can be found on the Islington Carers Hub website.

Young Carers

Islington and Camden Young Carers service works with young carers up to 18 years old, their families, and professionals.

The service offers whole family support, alongside one-to-one support for young carers and works with families for up to six months.

Young Carers service and Islington Carers Hub work together to support transitions from children to adult services.

Find out more about the Young Carers service.

Financial help

When you look after a family member, friend or neighbour, you may be entitled to Carers Allowance or, if you are over 65, carers pension credit (Carers Premium). There are also other opportunities for working carers and carers getting other benefits.

The best first step would be to get a benefits check. You can do this with the Islington benefits calculator.

You can also contact the Islington Council Income Maximisation Team (iMAX) who will support you with this. Phone them on 020 7527 8600 or email ClaimIt@islington.gov.uk.

You can find out about other types of financial help and advice on our money and debt advice page.

Activities and short breaks

Caring is often a full-time role and you may want a break. A break could be a few hours a week or a short holiday.

There are a few ways you can take a break from caring:

• if you are eligible for a personal budget after a carers assessment, you can use that to fund a break
• if you do not have a personal budget, you can contact Islington Carers Hub on 020 7281 3319 for support with having a short break. 

There are activities across the borough that are aimed at or open to carers. Find out more about these on the Islington Carers Hub events page. 

You can also read the latest Islington Carers Hub newsletter or Age UK Islington Newsletters for more ideas.