Attendance Allowance helps with extra costs if someone has a long-term physical or mental condition or disability.

If you have reached State Pension age and need help with personal care, and support, it could also be spent on other types of help in the home, or on equipment to help you stay independent. For example, towards bills, getting meals delivered, or to cover the cost of taxis.

Attendance Allowance can be received if someone has reached State Pension age and the following apply:

• They have a physical disability (including sensory disability, for example, blindness), a mental disability (including learning difficulties), or a health condition

• Their disability or health condition is severe enough for them to need help caring for themselves or someone to supervise them, for their own or someone else’s safety

• They have needed that help for at least six months

You can apply for Attendance Allowance online or by post. For more information and how to claim, visit Attendance Allowance: Overview – GOV.UK or call the Attendance Allowance helpline on 0800 731 0122

A new campaign has launched in Sussex to encourage people to look after their mental wellbeing over the winter months and seek support when needed.

The ‘How Are You Really Feeling?’ campaign, which runs from Tuesday 10 December 2024 to Sunday 12 January 2025, is designed to raise awareness of the range of services and resources available in Sussex to support people with their mental wellbeing over the Christmas and new year period. It also aims to make mental health a positive part of everyday conversation by encouraging everyone to regularly check-in with themselves and those around them. Continue reading →

An innovative new musculoskeletal (MSK) service is set to start for local people this month.

Many people live with musculoskeletal conditions, which can affect your joints, bones and muscles, and sometimes associated tissues such as your nerves. They can range from minor injuries to long-term conditions.

The new service will see a fully integrated MSK pathway across primary, community and secondary care for orthopaedics, pain and rheumatology, and include services such as physiotherapy, diagnostics, and surgical treatment. It will focus on improving access, experience, and outcomes for local people. Service providers will work together to make sure people receive a consistent experience, feel supported throughout the whole pathway, and get the best treatment first time.

Learn more about the new musculoskeletal service in Sussex.

Many GPs and pharmacies close over the Christmas and New Year bank holidays, so make sure you’ve ordered your repeat prescriptions in plenty of time to avoid running out of your medication.

You can order your repeat prescription through the NHS App or your GP’s online service if they have one. If you don’t have access to these, you can simply order through your GP practice, or your local pharmacy if your GP has set this up.

Avoid unnecessary festive stress by planning ahead and making sure your medicine cabinet is stocked up.

How to order a repeat prescription – NHS

Living with excess weight increases the risk of developing diseases and reduces life expectancy, but what does the term ‘healthy weight’ mean to you? And how easy is it to achieve?

We’d like to hear your views about what makes it easier or harder to be a healthy weight in East Sussex.

You can share your feedback by completing a short survey and scoring local places on an interactive map. The survey should take around 15 minutes to complete.

The survey explores things like:

• are local places to walk/ wheel good or do they need developing?
• are you able to access healthy foods?
• can you access gyms, sports pitches or outdoor spaces easily?

We’re particularly keen to hear from people who support others to be more physically active, and from people who want to do more but currently do very little activity.

Your insights will inform the Healthy Weight Partnership’s Healthy Weight Plan for East Sussex. The plan is to support more people to achieve a healthy weight, eat a balanced diet and meet physical activity guidelines.