Family/Carer Support Services
We are here to support carers & families from the hospital stage through to many years post injury.
Headway Birmingham & Solihull is a Delivery Partner of Birmingham Carers Hub, a free service offering a range of support to unpaid family carers in Birmingham. You can access support if you only provide a couple of hours care a week and you don’t need to be in receipt of carer benefits.
To start the registration process with Birmingham Carers (BC) Hub, hear about carer information and events or subscribe to Birmingham Carers Hub’s newsletter. Call 0333 006 9711 or email info@birminghamcarershub.org.uk to check if you are already registered. We can also register you by call the Headway helpline.
The Birmingham Carers Hub partnership is managed by Forward Carers CIC and funded by Birmingham City Council, and Birmingham and Solihull Integrated Care Board who are integrated with the Birmingham Children’s Trust.
You can still access our many services whether you are registered with the BC Hub or not, and if living in Solihull.
At Headway, we understand that everyone is different and will need different support at various times during the brain injury journey. Whether you wish to have a chat with someone, ask for practical support, would like to meet with other people who are on a similar journey to yours or need some guidance and direction because you don’t know where to turn, please give us a call.
Our staff can help by listening and offering tailored support to your circumstances. Please call us on 0121 457 7541 Option 1 during our enquiry line times and we will do what we can to help you.
We define a Carer as: Someone who provides unpaid care to a friend, neighbour, or family member due to frailty, age, physical illness, mental health condition, addiction or any other reason, who couldn’t manage without support.
ENQUIRY LINE - Mon-Thurs 10.00am - 3pm and
Fri 10.00am - 2pm
Simply call us for any enquiry and we will point you in the right direction
0121 457 7541 Option 1
HOSPITAL LINK WORKERS
We have Hospital Link Workers who can support you if you know someone who is located in the brain Trauma wards at the Queen Elizabeth Hospital in Birmingham. We also cover several other hospitals across Birmingham. The Hospital Link Workers will be able to help you at the early stages of brain injury, give guidance and specific support. The Hospital Link Workers can also help you apply for funding to help with some of the costs (e.g. travel costs/parking) if the person is in hospital for an extended period of time, as well as supporting you back home. One of our Hospital Link Workers is able to offer BME support particularly with Punjabi and Hindi, along with some publications.
WELLBEING AND CARER ASSESSMENTS
We can provide support through Wellbeing and Statutory Carer Assessments on behalf of Forward Carers and Birmingham City Council. We can assess your unmet needs, help find solutions andt move forward with your life again. We can help put services in place and offer practical support. We can offer Statutory Carer Assessments including Carer Wellbeing Payments. We can advise on our internal support services as well as look at other external services and signpost/refer to other organisations.
SUPPORT FOR FAMILIES/UNPAID CARERS
We run a Carers Support Group once a month. Details can be found by phoning our helpline above. Carers can meet with other carers, share experiences and give support to one another. Being a member of Birmingham Carers Hub also entitles carers to attend the events that they put on throughout the year. All families are also welcome to attend Headway Services For All activities. We are happy to support you to an event for the first visit.
SUPPORT ON BRAIN INJURY INFORMATION
We offer information and support for families around understanding brain injury, as well as other relevant topics that may be requested/arise.
COUNSELLING
We can offer counselling sessions. We can offer face to face and telephone counselling for both carers and those that are brain injured. One to one sessions start at £45 for 6 sessions.
If you require further details, please contact us on the telephone number 0121 457 7541 Option 1.
FINANCIAL SUPPORT/FAST TRACK
We can offer support with completion of benefit forms. This is open to carers and also to those who have an acquired brain injury. We can offer a one-off consultation where we can guide you through the areas of the form if you wish to complete it independently. If you would require support completing the form, we can do this at no extra cost. Forms can include Personal Independence Payment, Universal Credit etc, Carers Allowance, Attendance Allowance, Work Capability Assessment and related forms. Please contact us for more information about this.
RESPITE
We can refer and signpost carers for respite which enables carers to have time for themselves for health and wellbeing.
We are able to refer you to our new Services for All programme where we will provide a variety of services for both the family and brain injured people. READ MORE
Overall, Headway Birmingham & Solihull offer a number of services above that families/carers can access mostly FREE of charge (unless otherwise specified) and to meet different needs.
OTHER PRACTICAL SUPPORT for the whole family affected by brain injury.
Across the UK, it is estimated that there are as many as half a million people living with the long-term effects of brain injury. Some of those people have disabilities so severe that they need specialist care in a residential setting, but the vast majority live at home, with partners and parents and other family members who take on the additional role of carer. It is therefore crucial that carers get the right support to help take on this role and that they also address their own health and get 'time out', if they are going to be able to continue in this role.
So, if someone close to you has had a brain injury and you are their closest family member/now their carer,
it may be helpful to know that there are many people who have faced the same uncertainties and anxieties that you
may be feeling. You are not alone and there is information and support available.
REFER ALSO TO OUR PAGE ON WORKING CARERS
Across the UK, it is estimated that there are as many as half a million people living with the long-term effects of brain injury. Some of those people have disabilities so severe that they need specialist care in a residential setting, but the vast majority live at home, with partners and parents and other family members who take on the additional role of carer. It is therefore crucial that carers get the right support to help take on this role and that they also address their own health and get 'time out', if they are going to be able to continue in this role.
So, if someone close to you has had a brain injury and you are their closest family member/now their carer,
it may be helpful to know that there are many people who have faced the same uncertainties and anxieties that you
may be feeling. You are not alone and there is information and support available.
Family/Carer Support Services working in partnership with:-
and supported by:-
