New Carers Research reveals impact and lack of support for Carers

‘Supporting Carers to be Healthy and Connected’ – Research Summary for Carers Week 2018

Carers Week is an annual campaign to raise awareness of caring, highlight the challenges carers face and recognise the contribution they make to families and communities throughout the UK.

The survey findings are based upon the 6,828 responses to the State of Caring 2018 survey from individuals in the UK who are currently providing care.
This includes 5,051 carers from England, 547 from Northern Ireland, 645 from Scotland, and 514 from Wales.

Their findings included:

• 72% of carers in the UK said they had suffered mental ill health as a result of caring
• 61% of carers in the UK said they had suffered physical ill health as a result of caring
• 35% of carers in the UK expect that they will be able to provide less or no care in the future because of poor mental health
• 43% of carers in the UK expect that they will be able to provide less or no care in the future because of poor physical health

The 3 top issues that contributed to Carers stress and anxiety levels were:

• Not getting enough sleep
• Providing hands on care for the person they care for
• Managing financially

Other findings include:

1. Carers aren’t being routinely offered support with their own health and well-being from their GP
2. Carers need to be consistently identified by health professionals
3. Growing numbers of older people are providing care at the same time as managing their own health and care needs. Older carers should be identified and offered support to coordinate care, have regular breaks from caring, and plan for the future as their own health needs change.
4. Across the UK, there is a need for sustainable funding of social care support.

Carers UK works a range of organisations to support Carers Week, including Age UK, the Carers Trust, Independent Age, Macmillan Cancer Support, Motor Neurone Disease Association, the MS Society and Which? Elderly Care.