Have we turned into a nation of incompetents?

A new study has found that three in 10 British adults don’t know what number to dial if they need an ambulance, fire service or the police, and four in 10 couldn’t find their way to the nearest hospital.

Not only do we not know how to get professional help in an emergency, but we also seem to be pretty hopeless about basic home safety checks: how to tell whether the smoke alarm is working; what to do if the electricity goes off; who to call if you smell gas. Nearly half of the people surveyed thought that an emergency situation would leave them feeling panicked and unable to cope.

You can read more about how to be ready for domestic dramas here

Mary Farmer, our resident nutritional expert, spent considerable time professionally in care homes as an NHS dietitian. In many, there was little acknowledgement of the great diversity of individuals in their care. Here she muses on the way that age is often allowed to steal other aspects of a personality, and reviews a powerful book that she was initially reluctant to read.

Atul Gawande’s Being Mortal is a practising surgeon’s look at ageing and death, what medicine can achieve – and what it should not be attempting. This is not a new book – it was published in 2014 – but it is a timely reminder of how far we are from achieving autonomy and dignity to the very end of life.

Read Mary's musings here

It has always seemed unjust that people who receive Disabled Living Allowance (DLA), Personal Independence Payment (PIP) and Attendance Allowance have been exempted from the household cap on benefits, but anyone caring for them has not.

In practice, the effect of this has been that those who are married to the person they care for, or are caring for young children, are not subject to the cap, while carers in other household situations have been caught by it. Anyone who provides care for another adult, such as a sibling, parent or grandparent, or to an adult disabled child, is subject to the cap, which can leave them without enough money for essential living costs.

So it was good to hear from the Lords' debate on the Welfare Reform and Work Bill, that the government will be putting right this wrong, by exempting all full-time carers who receive Carer's Allowance from the cap. More here

We wrote last year about the lack of Lego characters for disabled children to identify with – at the time, the only figure to be seen in a wheelchair was an elderly man with a carer, in the Duplo range.

A campaign was launched by Toy Like Me to encourage toy manufacturers including Lego to make their products more representative of the diversity of children who would be playing with them. And news reports from the International Toy Fair at Nuremberg showed that they have listened: the first wheelchair mini figure - a feisty fellow in a beanie - will be going on sale this June, prompting "genuine tears of joy" from Rebecca Atkinson, the organiser of the #Toylikeme campaign.

They now have a Crowdfunder project, aiming to raise the money to convert their successful social media activities into a website and internet hub for families and educators.

Derek Leckie, our marketing guru, takes a look at The Care Agency, a new arrival on the Independent Living website.

The company is well-established, having been matching live-in carers with clients since 1990. Their aim is to enable people to carry on living in their own homes, when they might otherwise have to move into residential care.

Live-in care is the less well-known option, compared with care homes and domiciliary care, and is ideal for anyone who wants to stay in familiar surroundings, but doesn't like the idea of a series of different care assistants coming to provide help through the day.

The Care Agency can provide emergency and short-term care, as well as establishing long-term relationships between client and carer.

If you provide high quality products and services, and you would like to reach our site visitors and newsletter readers, please email derek@independentliving.co.uk

If you fancy something a little different by way of pancake action on Shrove Tuesday (next week), how about the Rehab Parliamentary Pancake Race, now in its 18th year? MPs, Lords and journalists compete fiercely, while raising awareness and funds for the Rehab charity - more details here

Terry Lifts have received the prestigious BHTA Independent Living Design Award for their elegant and easy-to-use Lifestyle Lift – more here

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Until next time, all good wishes,

Frances