This year’s Carers Week theme is Recognising and Supporting Carers in the Community.
Carers UK in its report launched today (June 5) reveals that 19 million people in the UK have provided unpaid care but haven’t identified as a carer.
‘This means that nearly three quarters of people (73%) who currently provide unpaid care, or have provided care in the past, could be missing out on important information, support or advice that could make a real difference to their day-to-day lives. We also found that eight million people (31%) in the UK with experience of providing care have seen their health and wellbeing suffer – a statistic which won’t be a surprise to many of you’.
The Carers Week campaign is calling for: “the UK Government to deliver coordinated cross-Government action to better identify and support unpaid carers. This action would focus on helping carers to stay in or return to work, prevent poverty, combat loneliness, improve carers’ health and wellbeing and improve equality of opportunity.”
You can support the campaign by writing to your MP here. https://www.carersweek.org/about-carers-week/about-our-campaign/
On a local level, ahead of Carers Week, Brixton based charity Carers Hub Lambeth spoke to adult carers and young carers they work with, to find out what makes them feel supported and recognised. Over the course of the week, Carers’ Hub will be posting clips from these interviews at www.carershub.org.uk/carersweek ; you will also find news of events, online awareness training and outreach taking place to mark the week.
About Carers’ Hub Lambeth
We support unpaid carers aged 5 upwards, offering a mix of 1 to 1 support, peer support groups, social and wellbeing activities, and training opportunities. If you are a young carer or adult carer we would love to hear from you!
Find out more at www.carershub.org.uk, call 020 7501 8970 or email connect@carershub.org.uk. Or pop along to the Connect Lambeth stall at this weekend’s Lambeth Country show, where a member of the Carers’ Hub team will be there to chat to you.
Polly Howes, Carers Strategy Development Manager
Read the Carers UK report here
https://www.carersweek.org/media/yqkdkodx/carers-week-report-2023.pdf