Latest news with #carers
Associated Press
a day ago
- Associated Press
Fire at French holiday home for people with disabilities leaves 1 dead, 4 missing
PARIS (AP) — A fire swept through a holiday home housing people with disabilities and their carers in southwest France on Monday, killing at least 1 person, critically injuring another and leaving 4 people missing and feared dead, authorities said. The blaze erupted at around 4:30 a.m., destroying part of the guest house in Montmoreau in the Charente region, the local prefecture said. Two dozen fire engines and around 80 fire officers rushed to tackle the blaze, which brought down parts of the roof, exposing charred beams. Sniffer dogs didn't find traces suggesting that the four missing people escaped the flames, Jean-Charles Jobart, secretary general of the Charente prefecture, told broadcaster BFMTV. 'Most of them are surely still under ruins, doubtless dead,' he said. The fire's causes are under investigation but are presumed to be accidental, he said.
The Sun
6 days ago
- General
- The Sun
Parents can claim back £10,000s if they took time off to raise kids in certain time frame – are you eligible?
PARENTS and carers could be missing out on tens of thousands of pounds due to a Government error. More than 100,000 people are thought to have incorrect gaps in their National Insurance records, reducing their state pension pots. 1 The issue has impacted some people who cared for a child or someone with a long-term disability between 1978 and 2010. At the time, the Government had a system in place to make sure people would still get the state pension if they were taking time off work to look after a child or a loved one. The system was called Home Responsibilities Protection (HRP) and it should have been automatically awarded to those claiming Child Benefit. But there were errors in the system and it meant hundreds of thousands of people were left with gaps in their National Insurance records that shouldn't be there. Those affected are being underpaid the state pension, or could be in future. The HRP error was first discovered in September 2022 and published in the DWP's annual report. The Government department said the error was the "second largest" it had found relating to state pensions. Earlier this year, the Government confirmed all cases relating to the issue would be resolved by March 2027. It said people had up to two years from March 2025 to provide any additional information so they could claim back the money. The DWP and HMRC have already identified about 119,000 cases of - largely women - who were underpaid due to the error. How to protect your pension and Inheritance from the new Budget Between them they have received £735million. But it's thought there are still thousands of eligible people who are yet to respond to letters sent by the Government telling them they could be owed money. It is understood this is due to the Government requiring further documentation from them. What is Home Responsibilities Protection (HRP)? BELOW we reveal what Home Responsibilities Protection (HRP) is and why if you received it before 2000 you could be missing out on cash. From 1978 to 2010, protection was provided for parents to avoid gaps in their "qualifying years" by a system known as Home Responsibilities Protection (HRP) credits. This system was then replaced in 2010 by the one we have now, called National Insurance Credits. Most people got HRP automatically if they were getting child benefit in their name for a child under the age of 16 and they had given the child benefit office their National Insurance (NI) number. If someone claimed child benefit before May 2000 and did not provide their NI number on the form, it's possible that their credits may not have been transferred to their NI account from the child benefit computer. This may affect their pension entitlement and women who are now in their 60s and 70s are most likely to be affected. If you think you may be entitled, but you have questions, the Pension Service can be reached using the website or by calling 0800 731 0469. Could you be affected? It might be worth checking to see if you're affected if the following apply to you: You're currently aged between 41 and 90 You took time away from paid work to look after a child or a person with a long-term disability or illness at any point between 1978 and 2010 You claimed Child Benefit or Income Support for the first time between May 2000 OR Your partner claimed Child Benefit but you stayed at home to look after a child or person with a long-term health condition at any point between 1978 and 2010 OR You didn't include your National Insurance number on your claim. How can you check? If you're not sure whether you're being paid the right amount in your state pension, you can try these checks. First look at your state pension forecast or statement on the website. Another option is to call the Future Pension Centre, who can post you a copy of your forecast. Make sure you have your National Insurance number to hand when you call. If you're not getting the full state pension, or your forecast says you're not on track to get it, you should then check your National Insurance record for gaps. You can do this online on the website or call up the National Insurance Helpline on 0300 200 3500. If there are gaps in your record between 1978 and 2010, and these were years you took off work to care for a child, you may be missing Home Responsibilities Protection. What should you do next? You may have already received a letter if you're likely to have been affected. But HMRC has said many people didn't act on the letter - perhaps because they thought it was a scam or didn't need to take action. If you think you're eligible for HRP you can still claim without the letter. You can make a claim on the Government website here. The process takes about 15 minutes. You can also claim by post by filling in a CF411 form which can be downloaded off the link above or call the HMRC helpline on 0300 200 3500.
South China Morning Post
14-07-2025
- Health
- South China Morning Post
Hong Kong urged to expand carer support scheme to cover other vulnerable groups
A Hong Kong pilot scheme to identify hidden cases of at-risk carers should be expanded to also cover other low-income families and subdivided flat tenants, a social worker and a district councillor have urged, as a new database to address the issue began operation. The first part of the government initiative began at 9am on Monday and will see the Hospital Authority send daily alerts to the Social Welfare Department if any carers among the 8,000 to 9,000 households listed in the database have been hospitalised. The department would then check on the needs of the elderly or disabled person being cared for and offer them support, such as meal deliveries or respite services. The scheme was set up after a series of tragedies related to the increasing burden placed on carers' shoulders, with most cases involving single older people living alone and elderly couples who took care of each other. Social worker Crystal Yuen Shuk-yan cited concerns about possible time lags and questioned whether the alerts from the authority to the department would be prompt enough. 'If a carer was hospitalised during the day but authorities only receive an alert the next morning, wouldn't it be a long period of time where their dependents do not receive food or care?' she said on a radio programme on Monday.
South China Morning Post
14-07-2025
- Health
- South China Morning Post
Hong Kong urged to expand carer support scheme for low-income, vulnerable groups
A Hong Kong pilot scheme to identify hidden cases of at-risk carers should be expanded to cover low-income families and subdivided flat tenants with more timely follow-up, a social worker and a district councillor have urged, as a new database to address the issue began operation. The first action of the government's scheme, which began at 9am on Monday, would involve the Hospital Authority sending daily alerts to the Social Welfare Department on whether any carer from the 8,000 to 9,000 households listed in the database had been hospitalised. The department would then follow up on the situation of the elderly or disabled person being cared for and provide services such as meal deliveries or respite services. The scheme was set up after a series of tragedies in the city amid an increasing burden placed on carers' shoulders, with most cases involving single elderly people living alone and elderly couples taking care of each other. Social worker Crystal Yuen Shuk-yan cited concerns about possible time lags and questioned whether the alerts from the Hospital Authority to the Social Welfare Department would be prompt enough. 'If a carer was hospitalised during the day but authorities only receive an alert the next morning, wouldn't it be a long period of time where their dependents do not receive food or care?' she said on a radio show on Monday.
Irish Times
13-07-2025
- Entertainment
- Irish Times
‘You just felt it all through your body': Derry carers find their rhythm with Japanese taiko drums
In a far-flung corner of a Derry industrial estate, the Thursday morning calm is interrupted by the sound of thunderous drumming . A group of women are banging huge, cowskin-covered Japanese taiko drums in a mirror-walled dance studio, tucked between a kitchen showroom and a tyre shop. As they play in unison – wearing yellow foam earplugs to protect their hearing – they utter chants, or 'kiai', to encourage each other and release energy. Beyond this room, their responsibilities are heavy. Each one of these women is a carer: for family members with special needs, foster children, children in kinship care, or elderly parents. During breaks between songs, someone will have to slip outside to answer a phone call that can't wait, leave early for an appointment or share a message from a friend who is unable to attend. But from the moment they lower their arms ceremonially, and their sticks make contact with the drum, their sole focus is the beat. Taiko drumming has been part of Japanese culture for centuries, with its powerful rhythms and rousing shouts heard everywhere from religious ceremonies to battlefields. READ MORE Derry woman Fiona Umetsu, who runs the Taiko for Carers group and the local Japanese arts organisation Foyle Obon, first encountered the ancient art form in the 1990s. She was teaching English in Tokyo when a friend took her to see the world-renowned taiko group Kodō at a festival. 'In my mind's eye I can still see [that performance]. You just felt it, all through your body,' recalls Umetsu, who decided there and then to learn taiko for herself, and joined an all-female group in Tokyo. She also fell in love with a Japanese man, Katsu, at about the same time, after meeting him at a house party on St Patrick's Day. The couple married, started a family and moved to Ireland in 2000, when Umetsu assumed she would have to bid farewell to the beautiful (and big) barrel-shaped drums for good. 'I broke my heart thinking, 'That's it now, my taiko world is over',' she says. 'A labour of love': Taiko for Carers perform at Foyle Obon, which Fiona Umetsu established with her husband Katsu and other friends more than a decade ago. Photograph: Gav Connolly But on a trip back to Japan to visit Katsu's parents in 2009, Umetsu had the opportunity to buy a taiko drum at a bargain price. After a quick phone call to Virgin Atlantic, the family found themselves flying home with 'a drum instead of a suitcase, three children under the age of five and two prams'. Derry was soon introduced to the rich sound of taiko. More drums were acquired by the couple on subsequent visits, and Katsu was even able to make some himself using a neighbour's old floorboards. 'It's been such a labour of love,' says Umetsu, who established Foyle Obon with Katsu and other friends more than a decade ago. In addition to the Taiko for Carers project, the charity has run cross-community workshops for Catholic and Protestant schoolchildren, LGBTQ+ teens and people looking to improve their mental wellbeing. A number of scientific studies have highlighted the health benefits of taiko, which requires deep concentration as well as physical exertion. In an Ulster University research project into Taiko for Mental Health and Wellbeing , published in 2024, respondents reported 'a wide range of mental and emotional health benefits', as well as help with emotional regulation, anger management, stress and anxiety. The Taiko for Carers project, which began with a grant from the Department of Health in Northern Ireland's Support for Carers fund, has introduced more than 150 northwest carers to the art form. There are more than 20 members in the current group. For many participants, it's their first time discovering taiko. 'We had one girl who thought she was coming to do martial arts,' Umetsu says with a laugh. 'We have others who say, 'I haven't got a notion what we're here to do, but someone's roped me into it', or you get people who are quite shy. But once we get started, there's a real development in people's focus.' Donna Large joined the project a year and a half ago, shortly after leaving a career in retail management to become a foster carer. Foster carer Donna Large: 'The one night in the week I could sleep was after coming to taiko' 'I had a tough placement the first few months, and the only thing I could get out to was to this group,' she says. 'I had been very sociable before that, and to go to suddenly feeling trapped in your own house, this – it probably sounds a bit silly, but it was my only escape. The one night in the week I could sleep was after coming to taiko. You could just come in and switch off and have a laugh. It was the only time my brain stopped, and I think it's one of the few reasons I managed to get through the first placement.' Being a carer is a 24/7 job and at times it can be quite lonely and isolating, whereas this is somewhere that you can chat to other people who get where you're coming from — Kelly Brown For Large, who insists she is 'not musical at all', the fun and connection have been the best part of the experience. At the start of every session, each person will share how their week has gone, and what wins or challenges they've had. With funding from housing association Radius Housing's Good Relations programme, the group has also watched presentations about life in Japan, and learned origami and traditional festival dances. After the drumming, over a cup of tea or some lunch, the carers offer each other support and advice, and laugh at any blunders they made during practise. There is also a WhatsApp group, which was 'popping' in May when the carers performed at the annual Foyle Obon Festival. A Derry park was transformed into a 'Little Tokyo' for the celebration of Japanese culture, with drumming, traditional dance and storytelling, and sushi-making and calligraphy demonstrations. The Taiko for Carers group played in front of about 350 people in a large amphitheatre, joined on stage by two members from Kodō – the famed act who Umetsu first saw in Tokyo 30 years ago. Taiko for Carers at this year's Foyle Obon festival. Photograph: Gav Connolly It was Large's second time performing at the festival. 'I have no co-ordination whatsoever and last year, when my friends came to see me, they ripped me to shreds that day. They loved watching me fumbling about,' says Large. 'But it was the best thing, because when you're fostering, your family and friends might meet the kids, but they don't meet the other carers. They got a huge insight that day into how big the network is.' Two children who Large was providing respite foster care for also came to watch this year, and had 'an absolute ball'. Kelly Brown, a supervising social worker for foster carers, and a carer herself, has been with the project since its inception. 'When carers are mentally fit and mentally healthy, they can do a really good job of caring for our children. A big part of my focus is on wellbeing,' she says. 'The idea was to find something to unify the carers, to give them somewhere to come together and share common ground. Being a carer is a 24/7 job and at times it can be quite lonely and isolating, whereas this is somewhere that you can chat to other people who get where you're coming from. You can share your stories, and hints and tips about how to manage difficult situations.' [ Who cares for the carers? 'If I was going to be able to help Tony I needed to get my own life back on track' Opens in new window ] Brown adds: 'A lot of our carers don't get the opportunity to travel; they never get a night away. A lot of the people we work with, through illness or because they are young children from an adverse background, they've never had a chance to go anywhere outside of the city walls, basically. 'Having the experience of going to Little Tokyo was outstanding for them and opened their awareness of different cultures and different ethnicities.' Áine McFadden is a kinship carer to her grandson and granddaughter, aged 11 and 10. 'We do everything around the kids, and this was for us. I loved it,' she says. 'I blocked out my time, and I was so precious about it that I wouldn't allow anyone to interrupt it. If I had to miss it once, I felt that I didn't get my energy out that day.' Before the festival performance, McFadden was 'terrified' with nerves. 'I couldn't look at my grandchildren,' she admits. 'And then while I was doing it, I just forgot about the audience. I put myself back into playing here and how it makes me feel and why I'm doing it. 'Afterwards, seeing the two kids clapping and really excited just gave me a real sense of achievement. I did this amazing thing in front of people that I would never have done in my wildest dreams. You just get into the excitement and passion, and you feel all right because Fiona's there.' Back in the dance studio, the carers have put down their drumsticks for the morning. This is their last meet-up for now; the project will go on pause while Umetsu seeks funding for more sessions. There are cups of tea and boxes of buns waiting for them in the room next door, and she, Katsu and their son Forton will soon start packing up the drums. But first, the group must finish together in the traditional Japanese way, by uttering the words, 'otsukaresama deshita'. How Japan fell in love with Irish culture Listen | 17:56 'At the end of everything you do in Japan, whether it's the end of a workday or playing a game of sports together, whatever you do as a team, you say it to each other,' says Umetsu. 'It means, 'thank you for making yourself so honourably tired'. You can't play taiko by yourself. It's an acknowledgment that we all put our energy in, and we did this thing together.'
