A new survey from Carers NI exploring the financial impacts of being an unpaid carer has laid bare the terrible poverty, stress and strain they are experiencing across Northern Ireland.

These impacts include distressing poverty experiences such as feeling hungry but not being able to eat; skipping meals; struggling to buy clothes or shoes; being unable to heat their homes and being in debt.

Crucially, nearly a third of all those who responded to Carers NI's survey said they had to leave the workforce altogether because of the strains of caring.

The 2024 State of Caring survey was informed by over 1,200 local carers who were asked their views on a range of financial, employment and wellbeing issues. Other headline figures from the survey show that:

• 28% are struggling to make ends meet - this figure rises to 44% for those in receipt of Carer’s Allowance
• 58% are struggling to afford electricity and gas, with 45% struggling with other heating costs (eg heating oil)
• 34% are struggling to afford food. Of those who are struggling to afford food, 62% tell us they have skipped a meal, 54% have reduced the size of their meals in order to get by, and 35% have said they felt hungry but didn’t eat
• 44% provide over 90 hours of care per week
• 29% have had to leave the workforce altogether because of the strains of caring
• 52% have had to use their savings in the last 12 months, and 31% are using credit cards.

There are 220,000 unpaid carers in NI, nearly 60% of whom are women. NI has the highest proportion of unpaid carers anywhere in the UK and the highest proportion of people providing the most intense level of care ie 50+ hours. Each year, unpaid carers in NI save the public purse £5.8 billion in care costs, yet carers receive pennies per hour despite providing round-the-clock care.

In the summer of 2024 Carers NI delivered a petition to the Communities Minister signed by 1,393 carers calling for a Carer’s Allowance Recognition Payment of £540 per year for unpaid carers in Northern Ireland. A recent response from the Minister indicated that any budget to facilitate this carers recognition payment would have to be agreed by the NI Executive.

The State of Caring 2024 NI survey results build on the bleak picture of poverty as already reported by the Carer Poverty Commission, which has outlined the policy and legislative supports to help lift carers out of shocking levels of financial hardship.