ITV News survey finds bleak picture for UK carers
05 February 2009
An ITV News investigation in conjunction with Carers UK has uncovered a bleak picture for the 6 million people in this country who look after a sick or disabled relative and receive little or no outside help.
An exclusive survey highlights that most families struggle financially, find the benefits system difficult to understand and often lead very isolated lives. The findings will be part of a special ITV News series, Who Cares?, starting on Monday 6 February.
Through Carers UK, ITV News asked 1,000 people how they cope financially with looking after someone and a staggering third of respondents said it was "difficult" while another 21% said it was a "constant struggle".
Almost a third of carers said they lived on benefits alone and a shocking 31% told us they had actually fallen into debt as a direct result of having to care for someone. Only 43% of respondents have income from employment - despite the majority of them being of working age.
One in four respondents had not claimed benefits because they said the benefits system is too complicated (13%), they didn't know what benefits to claim (10%) or they felt it wasn't worth it (6%).
In addition to struggling financially, many carers also feel socially isolated and say their health has suffered. 63% of respondents said they felt isolated as a carer and over a third said they never get a break from caring. Going on holiday or simply leaving the house to go shopping is often difficult.
A worrying 45% said their health had deteriorated since becoming a carer with 14% claiming their health was "much worse". Out of all respondents, 44% said they spend more than 70 hours a week caring for someone else, while another 10% spent at least 50-70 hours a week on a sick or disabled family member.
As a result of these striking findings, ITV News on Monday 6 February is launching a campaign calling for the Government to appoint a 'Carers Czar' to champion the rights of carers.
There are six million carers in the UK and 1.25 million care for over 50 hours a week. One in five people have given up work in order to care for someone.
ITV News' special series Who Cares? will start on the ITV Lunchtime News on Monday 6 February and run on the ITV Lunchtime and ITV Evening News all week.