A new report titled 'Adult Social Care Reform: the cost of inaction' is due to be published by Parliament's cross-party Health and Social Care Committee on Monday 5 May 2025. Carers UK submitted written evidence, gave oral evidence and supported an unpaid carer to share their experiences of providing unpaid care.  

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

"This report could not have come at a better time, at the start of the Casey Commission, providing robust analysis of the gaps that need to be tackled by Government. We hope that the Government will also act on its recommendations swiftly and consider the implications for investing more in social care in the forthcoming Spending Review. 

"Carers UK strongly welcomes the report's recognition of unpaid carers' role within the social care system, which our research estimated at £184 billion a year, and the huge impact that it has on them when social care falls short. Its recommendation of a dedicated workstream within the Casey Commission to focus on better support for unpaid carers is timely and necessary.

 "Carers UK has consistently made the case for the economic case for social care, looking at how it supports unpaid carers in the workplace, as well as disabled people.  Our research has found that an estimated 600 unpaid carers give up work every day in order to care and two thirds didn't have a choice about providing unpaid care because no care alternatives were available.  As the Select Committee reflected, this impacts strongly on families' incomes, as well as productivity for employers and employment rates. 

"For carers, change and better support cannot come soon enough. Our research effectively shows a health crisis amongst unpaid carers providing very substantial amounts of care and 1.2 million unpaid carers are in poverty, with 400,000 in deep poverty."