Every Day 600 People Become An Unpaid Carer

Care. It saves lives, it helps people get back on their feet and the world as we know it would grind to a halt without it.

While it's easy for us to use our platform to champion our carers, there's a vitally important group of individuals outside of Curam who are all-too-easily overlooked: unpaid carers.

Carers UK estimates that one in eight people across the UK give unpaid support to someone who is elderly, seriously ill or disabled; it estimates that, by doing so, unpaid carers are saving the Government a staggering £193 billion a year.

However, despite the work they do, helping to prop up our fractured care system, unpaid carers continue to face an overwhelming lack of support and recognition from the UK Government.
 

Two leading charities; Carers UK and the Carers Trust are committing to changing this. They not only ensure unpaid carers are seen, heard and valued support unpaid carers but also provide them with information and guidance on what help is available to them

The Carers Trust

Operational since 1 April 2012, the Carers Trust combine the knowledge, skills, expertise and the experience of their founder charities – The Princess Royal Trust for Carers and Crossroads Care.

Carers Trust have highlighted three main areas that unpaid carers need support the most.

• Money and benefits
• Health and wellbeing
• Getting out and about

To find out all about the help and advice they provide, and the difference they're making to the lives of unpaid carers, take a look at their website by clicking here.

Carers UK

In addition to providing useful information to unpaid carers, Carers UK are a supportive community that connects and supports unpaid carers. They offer a downloadable guide to anyone who'd like to find out more about:
 

• The challenges of caring, from making difficult decisions to looking after your health and wellbeing
• An overview of which benefits you or the person you care for may be entitled to and information about how to get a benefits check
• Information about other financial help: including help with council tax, fuel costs, pensions and health costs.
• Practical help: including community care assessment, carer's assessment and direct payments.
• Information about health and care technology that could make life easier for you and the person you care for.
• Your rights at work, from flexible working and parental leave to protection from discrimination.
• How to find other help nationally and in your local community.
   

To find out more about the essential work they do, head to Carers UK's website by clicking here.

With a challenging winter ahead with rising inflation, taxes and energy bills pushing people to the poverty line, it's never been more important to support, recognise and value the work of unpaid carers.