Carers’ Rights Day 2019
Today, Thursday 21st November, is Carers’ Rights Day across the UK.
In the last census of North Tyneside, 22,208 people – more than 1 in 10 of the adult population (11.1%) – had caring responsibilities, and over 1 in 4 of these carers (5,478) provided over 50 hours of unpaid care per week.
Last year (2018-2019) we advised 251 local residents about Carer’s Allowance, and 205 who listed their occupation as caring for another adult. Most of these enquiries (94%) were about whether people were entitled to Carer’s Allowance or how to go about claiming it.
However, many of these carers needed our help with other problems as well:
- 46% wanted advice about Disability Benefits (PIP, Attendance Allowance and DLA)
- 28% also wanted advice about Universal Credit
- 22% needed advice about Housing Benefit
- 12% wanted help managing Council Tax arrears
- 10% needed help with Rent arrears with the local authority
As can be seen from these figures, many carers are themselves in vulnerable positions or finding it difficult to manage their care responsibilities alongside other commitments:
- The North Tyneside Borough profile for December 2018 estimated that 14% of residents over 65 had caring responsibilities
- An Office for National Statistics Report in January 2019 found that 27% of ‘sandwich carers’ – people who care for both dependent adults and children at the same time – showed symptoms of mental ill-health, and 10% had difficulty managing their finances
- A Carers UK report in February 2019 showed that 1 in 7 of UK working adults also have caring responsibilities towards a friend or family member, and 2.6 million had had to quit their jobs in order to provide care
If you’re having difficulty with your benefits, your finances or anything else you’d like to ask our advice on, please call us on 0300 3309 047 or visit our offices
