This research from Carers NI and the Centre for Care estimates the economic value of unpaid care in Northern Ireland. It shows:

• People providing unpaid care for sick or disabled family members and friends are saving Northern Ireland’s health service £5.8 billion in care costs each year – representing £16 million per day, or £0.7 million per hour.
• The value of unpaid care in Northern Ireland has grown by over 40% during the last decade – significantly higher than the equivalent rise in England (30%) and Wales (17%) during the same period.
• In total, unpaid carers in Northern Ireland are saving the equivalent of 80% of the Department of Health’s entire day-to-day spending budget for 2023-24.
• The annual amount of money saved by unpaid carers is greatest in the Northern Health and Social Care Trust (£1.3 billion), followed by the Belfast Trust (£1.1 billion), Southern Trust (£1 billion), South Eastern Trust (£985m) and Western Trust (£800m).