Jomie

It would be an issue if hundreds of individuals decided that what was right for them is to have a walk round Dam Flask at the weekend. Look what happened in Florida when thousands of folk decided that it was right for them to go to the beach - link.

Beefface - you seem to be looking at this the wrong way. The restriction on movement is about saving lives, not whether there is a risk of ‘drawing the heat’. You are one person wanting to walk this route but it is a well known beauty spot that attracts folk from many different locales. It has the potential for the gathering of a number of people. Also, that walk is going to take longer than the stipulated one hour. The lockdown in this country is far less draconian than in some others and if we don’t want further restrictions we must abide by the law. Groose has the right idea - if you have to use transport, no more than a twenty minute drive. We need to remember that activity, in particular driving can increase problems for other people eg breakdowns, accidents. Stay home and stay safe - you can walk around Dam Flask another time. Sadly, for many people that won’t be possible.

Yes, it is entirely true in our borough. I suggest that if anyone has any queries about this they should contact their own environmental health department. The OP should not have to use the dumpit site, particularly as she is disabled. You should also know that not every disabled person who produces clinical waste has district nursing involvement.

The procedure in this borough is no special collection for non-sharps waste eg incontinence pads. The advice is to place the items in refuse bags and disposed of them in the general household waste bin. If an additional bin is required it can be supplied upon request. Sharps waste is collected by environmental health.

Thank you Ghozer - that clarifies things. I have done lots of reinstalls but not for a long time so needed a reminder. I had thought that I would need to log in first to accept the EULA but I always use my computer on a local account rather than using my Microsoft account. Will I need a flash drive or can I initiate the media creator tool from a download on the laptop? As you say, the bloatware might not be so bad so will take a look first. Half the problem is deciding what some of the programmes are and if you need them. I like to have a clean system with just the things I need.

Power of Attorney needs to be set up when the person has mental capacity, is able to consent to it and to appoint the attorneys. From the description you give of this person’s problems I would hazard a guess that this might not be the case here. If so, the family will need to discuss the matter with his psychiatric team. PoA is unlikely to be valid if there is doubt about his mental capacity.

I am thinking of buying a new laptop and would like to reformat with a clean copy of Windows 10 because I can’t be bothered with sorting through the bloatware. I am wondering if the aforementioned Media Creation Tool would be useful. It’s some time since I reformatted and have never done it on a new machine. I’ve looked it up but was wondering if someone would be kind enough to tell me the easiest way to do this? Was going to take it to our local computer shop but it will probably be closed. I need to know the exact procedure, including partition management because it will have the recovery one and I assume that won’t be needed. I appreciate that I might have to find drivers on the manufacturers’ website. The laptop is an Asus.

BobOfRoth - you will need two attorneys so it’s important that they are people who you know are capable of working together in your best interests. It’s tempting to save money by doing it yourself. I have just dealt with a legal matter and saved about £200 in solicitor fees but it was something that I knew could be done legally and safely. IMHO Power of Attorney is not in this category and is best done by a solicitor. When LPA needs to be used it is usually in a difficult situation and your attorneys will thank you for making things a bit easier for them.

BobOfRoth - there is an explanation of Jeffery’s points regarding Lasting Power of Attorney here. I’ve recently been acting as an attorney with general powers. As I understand it the General Power of Attorney gives the attorney the ability to deal with things such as property, business or financial affairs. However, once the person becomes mentally incapacitated Enduring Power of Attorney will need to be applied for. This takes time because a doctor’s opinion is needed and the EPA has to be registered. The fee is circa £80. I was able to manage the affairs of the person satisfactorily with just LPA for financial affairs. At the time of making it I chose not to have it for health because I did not want that responsibility. Latterly the person needed EPA and I found it problematic because at the time I had quite enough to deal with. Also, getting a doctor’s opinion then registering can take months. For this reason when I recently made a new LPA I opted to register it so it would be Enduring Power of Attorney. I did this so that my attorney would be spared the problems that I had. You need to understand both and the ramifications. See a solicitor and think carefully about this. Cost wise it would maybe be circa £300 but depends on whether you register it for EPA. You can always telephone a few companies for a quote.

*****

It is advisable to get legal advice sooner than later if the elderly person and their family wish to protect inheritance. Social Services can claim deprivation of assets whatever the time frame - there is no seven or ten year rule. Signing over property has to be done when the owner could not foresee the need for social care. It has disadvantages and it is worth remembering that many people will never require a care home placement. If the property is held as joint tenants it is worth considering changing it to tenants in common so that each person owns half of the property. For anyone who is facing the prospect of their relative going into care, in certain situations there is a mandatory disregard of property eg if there is anyone over 60 years of age, disabled or children who are living there. It is also worth applying for a Continuing Health Care assessment because if successful, care is financed by the health authority so is not means tested. People who are terminally ill can be fast tracked for this funding. Successive governments have failed to tackle the social care crisis with the result that it is a complex and unfair situation. People are having to navigate the system when they are probably distressed due to the illness of the person and their caring responsibilities. It does seem unfair and creates bad feeling. It needs sorting out quickly.

BobOfRoth - hopefully you will find the strength to live a good life without the use of alcohol. It is understandable that you were upset by some of the comments. Looking at it from both sides, if you didn't have problems with alcohol, would you give up your own life to support and care for someone who did? Carers give up their own life to care for another person. Research has been conducted into the health of carers and time and time again it indicates that they are chronically unwell, anxious and stressed. They tend to neglect their own health and as a result some die before their caree. That is the brutal truth of being a carer. Please don't blame others - their experience is different to yours and some of the members have given useful replies based on personal experience. Most people enter into a relationship for mutual support but with alcoholism the afflicted partner cannot always be supportive. Often people who are in relationships with alcoholics try very hard to support them over a long period of time and don't give up easily. Sometimes cutting loose is not about selfishness but about survival.

If you are a taxpayer, you should care because their globe trotting will escalate security costs, not to mention the 2.4 million that was spent on renovation of their home which will now stand empty for six months of the year, maybe more. If the example of Fergie is anything to go by they stand to make a lot of money in the USA. That would be at odds with their funded security costs. That is largely true and she received a warm welcome when she moved to the UK, particularly on her wedding day. On her official duties people seemed to be welcoming and accepting. The negative reports since the marriage have been unfortunate but some of them have proved to be largely true. This is not about the press or race - it is about a lady who is fundamentally unsuited to the royal life and a husband who doesn't want to do the job and who wants to please his wife. If their hearts are not in it then it is best that they leave so they have hopefully made the right decision. However, there needs to be no ambiguity - they should be in or out of the Firm. If out, they should have their titles amended as has previously happened when people have left the royal family.

Before she leaves hospital ask for a Continuing Health Care Assessment. This is for people who have primary health needs. If she meets the criteria she would be funded by the health authority. If her needs are classed as social then she would be placed in a residential home and this is means tested. She might be entitled to up to six weeks free care following discharge to a care facility - link. If she wants to go home you could ask about community services. They can’t provide 24 hour care but it might be possible with private carers and family support. There is more information on the AgeUK and CarersUK websites, among others.

There has been speculation that they would resign but this reads as if they are not giving up but will be part time.

@Dear Forum - if you decide to stay with your partner, please be aware that he will probably eventually develop serious health problems and it is likely that you will at some point become his carer. It tends to be insidious - needs increase gradually and at first the partner doesn't realize that they have become a carer. The anxiety, ill health and stress in carers is well researched and documented. You should maybe consider this carefully before making any decision.

You would need good reasons to stay in this relationship. Are you worried that if you left him he would try to commit suicide again, particularly as he lacks support due to rejection by his family? Are you optimistic that having given up alcohol once he can do it again? Have you considered contacting Al-Anon UK or other support group?

It’s many years ago but IIRC Decosol was used for cleaning leather car upholstery and consoles. It was a gel and very effective. There is a forum thread about it here. It would appear that it is no longer sold in gel form but is available as foam. Don’t know if it would be suitable for your suite.

Haven’t read the article but it sounds as if it might be the same, or similar to Care Navigation which some surgeries are now using. Care Navigation A member of the reception team will ask for a brief outline of the problem when the patient calls to make an appointment at the practice. Through specialist training, the team can offer more choice on who to see in the practice and help them to get to the right health professional fast. The receptionists never offer clinical advice or triage; it is about offering the choice to see other specialists in the practice team if they have the expertise to deal with the problem; often it is quicker and without the need to see the GP each time. Examples are calls that can be dealt with by a physiotherapist, the pharmacist, sometimes even the secretaries. This helps to free up time for GPs to care for patients with complex or serious health conditions. It also means that the patient sees the staff member who is best placed to deal with the problem.

Alan p - as Zach has said, treat yourself to a SSD and do a clean install of Windows 10. You will find that it will give an immediate speed boost and the laptop will be quieter and cooler. Use the Crucial Scanner to select the correct SSD.

Florence kat - if you haven’t already done so, take a look at BT Privacy at Home and the Telephone Preference Service websites.

Possibly some people who are still using Windows 7 are doing so because they are not confident computer users and don’t like change. In this case, any of the Linux distros are likely to confuse them more and arguably may not be a good alternative. It is not all about how the desktop looks. Many other factors come into play. When set up correctly, Windows 10 is familiar enough for Windows 7 users to eventually come to terms with.

Many of the caravan sites on the east coast are not year round occupation. You would have to move out for part of the winter months. If you want to make a caravan your permanent home you might need to look for a residential site.

An SSD should make a big difference. Hope the swap goes well.

PlayStation - how old is your laptop and what are the specifications? Why is it slow? Before going to the expense and work of swapping the hard drive it might be worth doing a bit of housekeeping to see if it improves the speed. The recovery drive will have all the bloatware which can take a while to remove so a fresh install of W10 would maybe give best performance but you need to get the license number from your current hard drive first. Sometimes it can be better to cut your losses and look for a new laptop. Companies such as Laptops Direct are worth checking out for bargains.