Growing Number of Full-Time Unpaid Carers Require Enhanced Support
A recent report by the Resolution Foundation highlights the increasing number of full-time unpaid carers in the UK, identifying a group of approximately 1 million individuals who provide at least 35 hours of care weekly. These carers, often from lower-income families, face significant challenges balancing their responsibilities with paid employment, with one in three unable to work due to their caring duties.
The research attributes this trend to an ageing population and rising rates of ill-health and disability, which disproportionately affect the poorest half of working-age families across the country.
According to the thinktank, nearly one in three adults of working age in lower-income households have a disability, compared to fewer than one in five in more affluent families.
In households with modest means, 1 million people provide unpaid care equivalent to a full-time job, dedicating 35 hours or more per week to these responsibilities, which complicates their ability to engage in paid work.
Expert Commentary on the Impact of Ageing and Disability
Mike Brewer, deputy chief executive of the Resolution Foundation, commented on the findings:
“Britain is getting older and sicker, while a greater share of its population has a disability. While these trends affect the whole of society, they are starkest in the poorest half of working-age families across the country.
“While we talk a lot about the effects of ageing and ill-health, the implications on demand for unpaid care is largely absent from political debate.
“That’s despite Britain having an ‘unsung army’ of 1 million people who do at least 35 hours of unpaid care work every week – equivalent to a full-time job.
“It is time to provide better support for these carers and their families, just as we have done with working parents in recent decades.”
Government Response and Support Measures
A government spokesperson acknowledged the importance of carers and the challenges they face, stating:
“We understand the huge difference carers make, as well as the struggles they may face.
“That’s why we’ve delivered the biggest ever cash increase in the earnings threshold for carer’s allowance, whilst unpaid carers can also receive support, including short breaks and respite services, through the Better Care Fund.
“Alongside this, we are reviewing the implementation of carer’s leave and considering the benefits of introducing paid carer’s leave.”
Issues with Carer’s Allowance Overpayments
In 2024, an investigation revealed that tens of thousands of unpaid carers, many already living in poverty, received substantial bills for overpayments amounting to thousands of pounds. These overpayments resulted from failures by the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) to accurately apply earnings rules.
The affected carers unknowingly breached earnings limits despite assurances from the DWP’s permanent secretary, Peter Schofield, in 2019 that new technology would eliminate such overpayment issues.
Following the introduction of the verify earnings and pensions tool (VEP), intended to address carer’s allowance problems, over 262,000 overpayments totaling more than £325 million were reclaimed from carers over five years. Additionally, 600 carers faced prosecution and received criminal records, according to the National Audit Office.
In response to these findings, the Labour party initiated an independent review of the allowance and advocated for raising the earnings threshold for claimants.
