• 400,000 unpaid carers live in deep poverty - 50% below the poverty line 

• The rate of poverty amongst unpaid carers is 50% higher in comparison to those who do not provide unpaid care  

• 62% of those receiving Carer’s Allowance live in poverty – half a million carers 

• Carers UK is calling for an increase to earnings limit for Carer’s Allowance and an increase in support for unpaid carers on means-tested benefits 

Poverty levels amongst those looking after a friend or family member who is older disabled or seriously ill are shockingly high, with millions of unpaid carers struggling to make ends meet.  

New research shows that unpaid carers are much more likely to experience financial hardship, and that the rate of poverty is 50% higher for those looking after a friend or family member compared to those who do not provide unpaid care.  

The report by WPI Economics for Carers UK, which was funded by arbdn Financial Fairness Trust, shows that a further 400,000 – nearly 1 in 10 of all carers – live in deep poverty, when the resources they have available are so scarce it places them more than 50% below the poverty line.  

Carer’s Allowance, the main social security benefit for unpaid carers, is one of the lowest benefits of its kind at £81.90 a week. Figures from the report showed that half a million carers receiving Carer’s Allowance live in poverty. An even larger number of carers receiving means test benefits such as Universal Credit find themselves in poverty: 900,000 unpaid carers. 

One of the main drivers of poverty is the difficulty of combining paid work with unpaid care. More than 600 people give up their job to care every day, and the report found a distinct gap in employment between working-age carers (62% in employment) and non-carers (75%). Other drivers included high social care costs and extra costs carers face, such as travel costs when accompanying the person they care for to appointments.  

Unpaid carers who are women, from ethnic minority groups, those living in the West Midlands and the North were also more likely to be in poverty.  

Unpaid carers contribute a staggering £162 billion to the economy each year, but despite the immense value that they bring, many feel undervalued, underappreciated and say that they need further support.   

Gary, who gave up work to care for his wife after she suffered a spinal injury 7 years ago, is struggling to make ends meet. He receives Carer’s Allowance, Universal Credit and is sometimes able to work part-time but the family have had to use food banks in the past.  

He said: "I care for many more than 35 hours a week and yet our income is just not enough to cover the basics. It’s so disheartening when the support available for unpaid carers is not enough to provide the safety net we need as a family. When caring for a loved one, it's not a choice. It's something you do. An increase in financial support would make a massive difference to us. It's a constant strain and now our daughter has started university, I don't know how we'll cope." 

Modelling done as part of this research shows that the following measures would be cost effective in lifting many carers and their families out of poverty: 

• As a first step, an increase of £11.10 to Universal Credit Carer Element and Carer Addition in Pension Credit would lift 30,000 people out of poverty and 40,000 people out of deep poverty at a cost of £580 million per year.  

• An increase of £36.30 for carers receiving Universal Credit would lift 110,000 people out of poverty and 140,000 out of deep poverty, at a cost of £1.8 billion per year. 

• An increase of £36.30 to Carer Addition to Pension Credit could lift 20,000 older carers out of poverty at a cost of £300 million. 

• An increase in the earnings limit for Carer’s Allowance to the equivalent of 21 hours at National Living Wage could lift 50,000 people out of poverty, at a cost of £90 million per year.1 

The report also found that Carer’s Allowance needs a full review, to increase the level of support to a sustainable level and to reassess its eligibility criteria and processes to ensure it adequately supports unpaid carers in a variety of situations.  

While a range of increases to Carer’s Allowance were modelled, and some were very effective at lifting carers out of poverty, these would be costly to implement without a full review of the benefit.  

Charity Carers UK is now calling on the Government to act on detailed recommendations within the report and announce a review of carers’ social security benefits. This would include committing to reviewing Carer’s Allowance to increase and improve support, as well as increasing carer top-ups for those on means-tested benefits. 

Emily Holzhausen CBE, Director of Policy and Public Affairs at Carers UK, said:  

“It’s deeply disturbing and shocking to see the numbers showing that millions of unpaid carers are living in poverty. Every day across the UK, the care they provide helps to hold society together. Yet so many pay an extremely heavy price with caring leaving them in or at risk of poverty and financial hardship. It’s simply unacceptable.  

“Relatively small increases to support can have a big impact on carers’ lives and lift hundreds of thousands out of poverty.     

“There’s also a real opportunity here for Government to show they care about carers and help deliver its growth and employment agenda by keeping carers in work or providing the right conditions for them return to work.   

“When so many carers have so little choice about caring, and are under immense pressure, it’s the Government’s responsibility to ensure they protected from poverty and ill-health, whilst being given the equal opportunities to thrive.  The recent scandal over Carer’s Allowance overpayments have shown that a review of Carer’s Allowance, including its processes, is long overdue. We need a modern benefits system to fit the changing needs of carers and society.  

Vivienne Jackson, Programme Manager at abrdn Financial Fairness Trust, said: 

 “The care system would collapse without the vital people who provide unpaid care. It’s not right that those who provide essential services to some of the most vulnerable people in our society are living in poverty. Government and employers need to work together to help lift carers out of poverty.”