Carers Rights Day

Today is Carers Rights Day, an annual event established by Carers UK to raise awareness of the rights and entitlements of unpaid carers. To mark the occasion they have released two new research reports.

Three heart shaped cushions pegged on a line

The first, Valuing Carers 2021/22, published in partnership with the Centre for Care, finds that unpaid carers are now providing care worth a staggering £184 billion a year. This huge increase - up nearly £65 billion since 2011 - is because families are providing more care than ever before.

The second report, State of Caring 2024: The impact of caring on employment, supported by TSB Bank, examines people's experiences of juggling work and care since the introduction of the Carer's Leave Act in April 2024, using findings from our State of Caring Survey 2024. This reveals that more than half (56%) of working carers cannot afford to take their entitlement to unpaid Carer's Leave, and that 78% say they need a statutory right to paid Carer's Leave to better help them juggle work and care.

Following their report earlier this year, they are continuing to call on the Government to introduce a statutory right to five days of paid Carer's Leave. They are working hard to secure this change which would benefit over two million carers, and we will keep you updated with news of this campaign.

If you have any questions about their latest research, please contact policy@carersuk.org.

13:18, 21 Nov 2024 by Jo Maye