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State of Caring 2017 Report - One in four unpaid carers “have not had a day off” in five years

25 Jul 2017 - 11:45 by helen.walker

This latest Carers UK report has found that carers are reaching ‘breaking point’ as they struggle to take even a day away from care responsibilities for years at a time. One in ten (40%) of unpaid carers have not had a break in over one year, whilst one in four (25%) had not received a single day away from caring in five years.

State of Caring 2017 also found that carers most frequently listed access to breaks as one of three factors which could make a difference in their lives (42%). Respondents explained their own personal reasons for needing a break, listing diverse benefits ranging from the opportunity to spend time with partners and children to being able to see a doctor for their own health conditions. Yet few are able to take regular breaks, with only 16% of carers currently buying or receiving a break from caring in the form of services such as respite or alternative care provisions.

Carers who had not had a break in a year or more reported a deterioration in their health, both mentally (73%) and physically (65%). Despite the catastrophic impact posed by a lack of personal time, 87% of carers still “struggle” to attain time away from their care duties. Carers named a number of barriers preventing them from taking a break:

Cost - Paying for or contributing towards the cost of a break (31%)
Care concerns – Person cared for is unwilling to accept support from others (31%),
support not on offer (27%), or
low confidence in quality of care (19%)
Lack of awareness – Carers would not know how to request a break (16%)

The research also charts a growing anxiety around the level of support that will be available against a backdrop of cuts to adult social care services. Almost a third (29%) of carers are worried that practical support for them might be reduced in the future. Already, more than a third (34%) of carers reported a change in the services they or the person they care for receives and, of these, four in ten (39%) experienced a reduction in the amount of support offered by social services.

A copy of the full report is avaible at http://www.carersuk.org/for-professionals/policy/policy-library/state-of-caring-report-2017
 

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