As we approach a UK General Election, it is vital that we use carers’ voices to campaign for change from the next UK Government and from Governments in Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland.
We want to hear your experiences of being a carer in 2024.
Our annual State of Caring survey is the most extensive survey into carers’ experiences in the UK. It’s incredibly important for us to be able to use your responses in our policy and campaigning work. With a new UK Government, there has never been a more important time to make sure that carers have a high profile and get concrete change.
Last year we were able to use carers’ responses to:
- make several recommendations to prevent carer poverty through our newly launched Carer Poverty Coalition, a group of 130 national and local organisations which recently published a manifesto on supporting carers facing financial hardship.
- inform our recently published manifesto calling on political parties to commit to a new social contract for unpaid carers.
- inform a new report we published with the All-Party Parliamentary Group on Carers which called for a National Carers Strategy.
- successfully campaign for new legislation allowing carers to take unpaid carers leave and to set down a good evidence base for the implementation of the Carer’s Leave Act 2023.
- campaign on overpayments of Carer’s Allowance, making the case for change leading to some commitments from Government to improve processes – although there is more to do on this.
- campaign on carers’ rights, where more progress needs to be made to ensure carers get the support they are entitled to.
In addition, the results from last year have been discussed on national TV shows, as well as local BBC radio, and in many national and local newspapers, raising the profile of unpaid caring across the UK, with carers’ voices and experience at the heart of all of this coverage.
This year, the survey covers issues and areas that carers have told us that matter to them. It may take around 20-30 minutes to complete. If you don’t get to the end, your responses will be saved and sent to us, even if you don’t finish. However, please continue with the questions as far as possible. This allows us to advocate far better for carers.
We know carers are busy and very much appreciate everyone who takes the time to complete the survey. The survey will close on 11 August and we will be sharing the results later in the year.
Best wishes
Carers UK