Ms Catherine Cox:

To come back in on respite, what is really important is that it is appropriate to the needs of the family and the person requiring respite. Probably the biggest fear for most family carers as they age is what will happen their son or daughter when they are no longer here or no longer able to care. As well as planning for respite now, we need to look to the future and see how many residential care settings we need. By doing that, at least families can be secure in the knowledge that their loved ones will be well looked after in appropriate settings when that time comes. In order for that to happen, we need to see a transition. Where somebody feels that their loved one may have to go into a residential setting in three or five years' time, that should happen over a phased period in order that it is not sudden and that when there is a crisis and a parent dies or is suddenly no longer able to care, the person they are caring for will not go into a very inappropriate setting, for example, a nursing home, if they are only in their 40s or 50s. We need future planning in order that the transition period can be smooth and that people's minds can be put at ease, particularly in the context of loved ones being placed in appropriate settings.