Retirement specialist Just Group have published new research that lays bare the bleak realities unpaid carers continue to face.
To say the pressures unpaid carers face are difficult would be an understatement. And that’s exactly the tone Just Group’s new research captures. Shock and woeful.
Published this week, the research from the retirement specialist organisation comes from a survey conducted among 1,000 people aged between 45-75 who care for a relative or a loved one.
Though the figures point to financial distress and physical health problems, the main area unpaid carers seem to be struggling with is keeping some form of social life – 45% of participants said, ‘I feel like my life is no longer my own’.
What’s more, the team found that 75% of respondents feel ‘on-call’ to deal with caring duties for half the week or more, including nights.
Echoing a similar tone, a large number of participants (41%) said that taking on an unpaid caring role has left them feeling isolated from the rest of society. Meanwhile, 50% said they turn down social opportunities to provide care and 52% are worried about committing to social occasions in case they need to be available.
Upsettingly, the research also shows that unpaid care roles don’t just impact plans outside of the house, but behind closed doors to. More than a third of those surveyed (37%) claimed their role has caused issues within their relationship and 6% cited it as a significant factor involved in their break-up or divorce.
Likewise, 30% said unpaid caring harmed their relationships with their siblings.
On a more positive note, despite the negative experiences 75% of respondents admitted they were glad to be providing care to their loved ones rather than somebody else, and 60% said they feel they are providing a social purpose.
‘This research paints a bleak picture of social isolation, anxiety and damaged relationships – this is the daily reality for the millions of people up and down the country who are providing care for a family member – the hidden cost of care,’ Stephen Lowe, group communications director at Just Group said. ‘The ties that bind are strong while most people are glad to look after their family members, it’s clear that providing this care comes at a high personal and financial cost.’
To give context, separate research shows the average amount of salary lost stands at £6,468 a year among carers cutting down or stopping work altogether, with one in six saying it had cost them more than £1,000 a month.
‘Perhaps the most telling figure in the findings is that 68% of carers said that providing care had made them more worried about becoming elderly. It suggests a society in which people fear later life and the prospect of needing care,’ Stephen continued.
‘Yet, time and again, we see people reluctant to put plans in place for this very eventuality because they say they’re waiting to see what the government will do. The public continues to be tantalised by promises of fixing the problem of social care and the latest government announcement is likely to drive four more years, at the very least, of paralysis rather than planning.’
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