Increase in adult carers feeling dissatisfied with support services

Just over a third of carers reported feeling very or extremely satisfied with support and services in 2021-22, according to a survey of adult carers across England by NHS Digital.

The percentage of carers who reported feeling very or extremely dissatisfied increased from 7.2% in 2018-19 to 8.5% in 2021-22.

The percentage of carers with a mental health problem or illness rose from 10.9% in 2018-19 to 13.2% in 2021-22.

However, over half of carers (57.2%) in 2021-22 reported their caring role had not caused any financial difficulties in the past year, increasing from 53.4% in 2018-19.

The results of the survey also revealed that over two thirds of carers (67.2%) feel that they have as much control as they want over their daily life and also feel encouraged and supported in their caring role.

The Survey of Adult Carers in England 2021-22 reports on the views of 43,525 carers who are caring for a person aged 18 and over.

The national survey usually takes place every other year and provides crucial information about the impact of people’s caring responsibilities on their quality of life, to enable greater understanding of the impact of carer support services and can inform service development.

Looking at the eligible population of all known unpaid adult carers, not just those who responded to the survey:

• The majority of carers whose gender was known were female (67.7%)
• The age band with the most carers was 55-64 years, which accounted for 25.4% of carers. The band with the fewest carers was 18-24 years which accounted for 1.9% of carers

The full report and previous data collection can be viewed here.

Photo by Stefano Intintoli