Carers UK welcomes CSR announcement for carers

Imelda Redmond, Chief Executive, said, “Government has heard Carers UK’s call for a radical rethink around the way that social care is funded.  Over the past couple of years, we’ve produced good evidence that the care simply is not there, leaving many carers struggling to care for their disabled, ill or frail relatives in poor health, having to give up work and live in poverty.

The NHS will be benefiting from a 4% increase in its funding and yet a great deal of the reforms are predicated on the basis of people caring for people at home by relatives and friends.   Yet carers often feel ignored and invisible to the NHS.  It is vital that we have to ensure that carers are a priority for spending from the NHS budget as well as social care and that they are treated as partners in care.

In research we will be publishing tomorrow (Weds 10 October) we will demonstrate that social care needs to wake up to the needs of working carers who are currently failed by the system.  For several years, Carers UK has been making a robust case for better and more sustainable funding of long term care, helping disabled and older people to continue living in the community.  

We are therefore delighted that Government is planning to reform the funding of long term care, ending up with a Green Paper and look forward to engaging in this process.  Britain has been lagging behind other countries throughout the world in finding a funding solution and we are delighted that Government taking action.

The rise the social care spending will help carers and the people for whom they are care, but it won’t meet the level of unmet need that currently exists, leaving many families to struggle on as before.  This is why we urgently need a sustainable funding settlement. 

Redmond added, “We will be scrutinising this settlement for social care to see whether what it actually entails for carers.   One particular area of concern is that the Carers Grant, which provides carers’ breaks, would not continue beyond 2007/8.   This settlement gives us every indication that the current spend of £185 million will continue and potentially increase.  Carers tell us time and again that breaks are a lifeline and yet they’ve been told by service providers that their breaks could cut if the grant does not continue.

Other areas that must be tackled by Government are measures to help support carers juggle work and care and the improvement and reform of carers’ benefits and income.   

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For further information contact:

Emily Holzhausen, Head of Policy and Public Affairs, Carers UK: 0794 127 3108 or Emily.holzhausen@carersuk.org

Notes to Editors

1.     Overall local authority funding, from which adult social care is funded is to increase by £2.6 billion by 2010-11 a real terms increase of 1%.  In addition, direct funding from the Department of Health for social care for older people and support services for carers will increase by £190 million to £1.5 billion by 2010, a real terms increase of 2.3%.   

2.     The research reports mentioned above reports are available to download at www.carersuk.org. To order copies e-mail: publications@carersuk.org or telephone: 0845 2410963.

3.     Carers UK is the leading campaigning, policy and information organisation of and for carers. Carers UK continues to make a difference to carers' lives by: campaigning for a better deal for carers; informing carers of their rights and what help is available; training and advising professionals who work with carers; working across the UK through its membership and networks of branches and affiliates. For more information, visit www.carersuk.org or for advice on your caring situation call CarersLine on T. 0808 808 7777.

4.     This work is part of a series of research reports published as part of the Action for Carers and Employment (ACE) National - a development partnership led by Carers UK and funded by the European Social Fund’s Equal programme.   This work aims to raise awareness of the barriers facing carers who wish to work, and tests and promotes ways of supporting them. Visit www.acecarers.org.uk