Carers UK: Research reveals over 2 million quit work to care

Press release from Carers UK

Government and employers must step-up support for families as survey reveals shocking impact of caring on workforce.

A staggering 2.3 million adults have given up work to care for an elderly parent, disabled or seriously ill loved ones, Carers UK and business forum Employers for Carers (EfC) today reveal.

A Carers UK/YouGov Poll shows just over 1 in 5 UK adults have seen their work negatively impacted as a result of caring (22%), including 2.3 million1 who have quit work and almost 3 million2 who have reduced working hours.

The impact was highest amongst 45-54 year olds, where more than 1 in 4 reported that caring had taken a toll on their work (27%).

Carers UK has pointed to the impact on family finances of giving up work or cutting working hours – including the risk of financial hardship and

All Party Parliamentary Group for Carers – draft minutes

All Party Parliamentary Group for Carers

Co-Chairs: Baroness Jill Pitkeathley and

Sir Tony Baldry MP

Draft Minutes: Tuesday 15th January 2013

Present

Baroness Jill Pitkeathley (Chair), Barbara Keeley MP, Baroness Wheeler, Baroness Howe, Baroness Lister, Dr Eilidh Whiteford MP and Dr Hywel Francis MP.

In attendance

Emily Holzhausen, Carers UK; Steve McIntosh, Carers UK; Chloe Wright, Carers UK, Emma Smale, Carers Trust; Michael Shann, Carers UK; Philippa Russell, Standing Commission on Carers; Professor David Croisdale-Appleby; John Bangs, Surrey County Council; Kirsty Slack, Carers Trust; Scott Sinclair, Marie Curie Cancer Care; Claire O’Neill, Marie Curie Cancer Care; Lauren Bowman, Adfam.

Apologies

Apologies received: Sir Tony Baldry MP, Hywel Williams MP, Russell Brown MP and Robert Walter MP

Minutes of the last meeting

Agreed.

Policy updates

Baroness Jill Pitkeathley introduced the meeting’s speakers and briefly outlined the changes coming in as a result of

Shameless onslaught on carers

 

 

CarerWatch members are outraged having learned of the latest details in a briefing paper recently released by DWP, Personal Independence Payment and Carer’s Allowance, that will affect many carers. Details as confirmed by Esther McVey, Minister for Disabled People -

“Latest estimates project there will be a net reduction of 9,000 recipients of CA (where benefit is in payment) by the end of 2018 as a consequence of reassessment for PIP”

As the above will be the result of a person needing care having lost their Disability Living Allowance, the impact on family’s incomes will be immense. This double blow will especially hit hard those families on the poverty line.

Add to this the introduction of bedroom tax, cuts to local services; we feel this shameless onslaught from the government has shown a total disregard for the services provided by carers. Services estimated to be £119billion per annum

Our society would not function without the care currently provided by unpaid carers and the consistent refusal by Governments to improve Carers lives has ripple effects throughout Social Services and the NHS. Precious few people receive the actual support they need and so many carers are just not receiving vital services and support.

These cuts contradict findings in the Breakthrough Britain report, undertaken by The Centre for Social Justice (CSJ), which was established as an independent think-tank by the Rt Hon Iain Duncan Smith MP, now the present Secretary of State for Works and Pensions.

It said –

“The low level of Carer’s Allowance discourages people from providing care to family members. It is one of the lowest forms of benefit available but it there is a high level of expectation in terms of work, in return”

Removing Carers Allowance from 9000 (projected no.) people will result in less families being able to provide care.

Therefore, we call on Iain Duncan Smith, Secretary of State for Works and Pensions, to look past his fantasy and wishful thinking for these welfare reforms, and look at the reality of what these cuts and reforms are actually doing to many people with disabilities/ill health and their carers.

 

The Great Disability Scam? Panorama 28th Jan BBC1 8.30pm

Many thanks to the team at WOWPetition for sending us these details

WATCH HERE  -  Monday 28th Jan 20:30 BBC One

Duration: 30 minutes

Only half of all people with a disability are in work. Panorama investigates if one of the government’s most ambitious welfare reforms, costing billions of pounds, can solve the problem of disability unemployment. Reporter Sam Poling reveals the private companies who are getting rich from the new reforms despite only being able to get a small fraction of disabled people back to work, and speaks to the charities who feel the most vulnerable in our society are being failed

They have suggested those on twitter use the hashtags  #BBCPanorama and/or #Panorama. Also to include their petition link – http://epetitions.direct.gov.uk/petitions/43154

Follow the programme    @BBCPanorama

Follow the Panorama blog too here

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Welcome to the Access to Elected Office Fund

Information taken from DRUK newsletter – @DisRightsUK

The Government has set up a fund to support disabled people who want to be considered for selection as candidates for an election, or are standing for election.

for full details see here

The fund offers individual grants of between £250 and £20,000 to disabled people who want to be considered for selection as candidates for an election, or are standing for election.

The grants help meet the additional support needs that a disabled person has that are associated with their disability. If this support were not provided, a disabled person may face an additional barrier in the selection and campaign processes compared to a non-disabled person.

The Other Care Crisis – Free the 100,000

We were sent this press release regarding a new report out today relating to the crisis in Social Care.

Full report here

Website - click here  Free the 100,000 , which includes details of actions you can take

For those using twitter you can find some suggestions to use here

Press Release

New research exposes scale of Government’s social care crisis for disabled people: Thousands struggling to eat, wash or leave their homes

 

• Almost 40% of disabled people receiving social care support are not having their basic needs met including eating, washing, dressing or getting out of the house.
• To make matters worse, Government proposals risk up to 105,000 disabled people failing to get basic support for their day-to-day lives.
• A £1.2billion funding gap in social care support for disabled people under age of 65 has been exposed
• Five leading disability charities have come together to urge the Government to guarantee vital support for disabled people to end this crisis.

New research published today exposes the true scale of the Government’s social care crisis for disabled people, which has left thousands without access to basic care to help them eat, wash properly and leave their homes.

The report ‘The Other Care Crisis’ is today published by Scope, Mencap, The National Autistic Society, Sense and Leonard Cheshire Disability. The leading disability charities are concerned that the debate about social care reform has focused on the needs of an ageing population and side-lined the thousands of disabled people under the age of 65 who rely on care in everyday life.

One third of the people who receive on social care are disabled, yet Emma from Cambridge says “Not getting the support I need has meant my life is on hold. I have no routine, I feel socially isolated, lonely and of no value to society. I’m only 24 I feel 84.”

The charities are urging the Government to put disabled people at the heart of reforms by setting eligibility for state funded social care at ‘moderate needs’[i] in order to guarantee the most vulnerable people in society basic support in their day to day lives.

The report, the first comprehensive analysis of how the social care crisis affects disabled people, brings together three new pieces of evidence:

Joint Committee on the Draft Care and Support Bill

Committee Room 6

Meeting starts on Thursday 17 January  at 9.45am

Draft Care and Support Bill Witnesses

1. Laura Robinson, Policy and Communications Adviser, National Voices, Marc Bush, Head of Research and Public Policy, Scope, Caroline Abrahams, Director of External Affairs, Age UK, Alex Fox, Chief Executive, Shared Lives Plus
2. Mark Goldring CBE, Chief Executive, Mencap, Mental Health Foundation,  Action on Elder Abuse, Sue Bott, Director of Development, Disability  Rights UK

 

WATCH LIVE HERE   from 9.45 am  17th Jan 2013

Committee home page

If using twitter hashtags in use include

#CareBill

#CareSupportBill

 

 

 

Census reveals major rise in numbers of unpaid family carers

New information from Carers UK

The number of people providing unpaid care for disabled, sick or elderly relatives and loved ones has risen substantially in the last decade.

Census reveals major rise in numbers of unpaid family carers

Regional and local carer numbers can be found

2011 Census figures  England, Wales and Northern Ireland

Support forum here

Adviceline here

 

 

General debate on ATOS Work Capability Assessments

Thursday 17 January in the Chamber – Back Bench business

General debate on ATOS Work Capability Assessments (Member in charge: Mr Michael Meacher).

Draft care and support Bill – Wednesday 16th January

2.45pm

Draft Care and Support Bill Subject: Draft Care and Support Bill Witness(es): John Adams OBE, General Secretary, Voluntary Organisations Disability Group, Des Kelly, Executive Director, National Care Forum, Lord Victor Adebowale, Chief Executive, Turning Point, United Kingdom Homecare Association Ltd (UKHCA) and The English Community Care Association (ECCA); Sue Brown, Head of Public Policy, Care and Support Alliance, Standing Commission on Carers and Emily Holzhausen, Director of Policy, Carers UK Parliamentary business for Thursday 17 January 2013 9.45am Draft Care and Support Bill Subject: Draft Care and Support Bill Witness(es): Laura Robinson, Policy and Communications Adviser, National Voices, Marc Bush, Head of Research and Public Policy, Scope, Caroline Abrahams, Director of External Affairs, Age UK and Alex Fox, Chief Executive, Shared Lives Plus; Mark Goldring CBE, Chief Executive, Mencap, Mental Health Foundation, Action on Elder Abuse and Sue Bott, Director of Development, Disability Rights UK