The life and times of an unpaid carer.

From April, 2025, the dominant UK media storyline about disability was driven by government benefit and budget changes (coverage of PIP/Universal Credit reforms, SEND funding and budget measures). That policy focus produced wide public debate and a surge of both critical reporting and alarmist / stigmatising language in some outlets and broadcasts, and strong pushback from disability organisations and disabled public figures.

Main themes seen in coverage

1) Policy-first reporting that often framed stories as “costs” or “savings”

Most sustained coverage (press and broadcast) centred on the government’s reforms and budget choices e.g., how benefit eligibility changes would affect claimants and how SEND spending is being reorganised in the Budget. This produced many data-led stories but also a tendency to treat disabled people primarily as a line in the public finances.

2) Stigmatising language and “scrounger” framing reappeared in public discourse

Across the period, a toxic trope that benefit claimants are “scroungers” surfaced in commentary and even on-air. A high-profile presenter had to apologise after using that language, showing it’s still present even among mainstream broadcasters. That language has a long history of producing stigma and discouraging claimants from seeking support.

3) Clear and organised pushback from disabled people and organisations

Charities (Scope, Disability Rights UK, campaigning networks) and more than 100 disabled public figures mobilised: petitions, open letters, briefings and media challenges were widespread both correcting factual points and calling out ableist framing. That pushback shaped some reporting and forced follow-up coverage.

4) Two concurrent narratives: data-driven critique vs. emotive/stigmatic stories

Some outlets provided evidence-led analysis of impacts (how many people lose PIP, extra costs to households).

Other pieces reverted to emotive or moralising frames that spotlighted “fraud” or “burden” rather than lived experience. This mixed coverage confused public understanding and amplified social stigma.

Concrete examples from the period

Guardian (April 2025): reporting highlighted policy analysis that warned hundreds of thousands risk losing PIP or incapacity-related support, and insisted that changes would make many disabled people “invisible” to systems of support. This story drove a lot of subsequent coverage and parliamentary pressure.

Charities’ responses & data: Scope’s 2025 work and “Disability Price Tag” evidence underlined the real extra monthly costs disabled households face used repeatedly by campaigners to contest government savings claims.

Advocacy and legal challenge coverage: Disability Rights UK and other organisations flagged the government bill as explicitly designed to reduce disability benefit expenditure, prompting sustained media attention and analysis.

Broadcast incident (Nov 2025): a BBC presenter apologised after calling benefit claimants “scroungers” on air, a high-visibility example of stigmatising language making national headlines and prompting debate about editorial tone.

Public figure activism: over 100 disabled public figures launched campaigns/open letters opposing PIP cuts, coverage of that mobilisation made clear disabled voices were coordinating a visible media response.

Newsrooms: what the coverage reveals about newsroom practice

Strengths: data and policy analysis were available and sometimes well-reported (OBR figures, charity research, parliamentary debate). That allowed civil society to hold policy makers publicly accountable.

Weaknesses: recurring use of stigmatic shorthand in headlines and broadcast soundbites (e.g., “scrounger”) and reliance on deficit or financial frames indicates gaps in editorial awareness of disability equity language and the social consequences of framing.

Practical suggestions for journalists & editors

Avoid shorthand moralising words (e.g., “scrounger”, “burden”, “deserving/undeserving”), they amplify stigma and discourage claimants. Use neutral terms like “benefit claimants” or “people receiving PIP”.

Explain systemic impact, not just individual anecdotes if you run a human story, connect it to data (how many will be affected, service impacts). Use charity research (e.g., Scope’s Price Tag) for context.

Quote disabled people first -centre lived experience and disabled experts rather than relying only on ministers or charity spokespeople. The campaigning activity in 2025 shows this improves accuracy and trust.

Check language and style – adopt a disability style guide (replace “suffers from”, “confined to a wheelchair”, “victim of” with person-centred or identity language as preferred by communities).

Be cautious with headlines and soundbites – headlines drive social media conversation; avoid sensational short forms that trade nuance for clicks.

Fact-check cost/savings claims – when reporting government numbers, also report how changes affect markers used by councils/NHS (e.g., PIP as eligibility marker for housing/tax relief).

Short recommendation for editors who want to reduce ableism in coverage

Publish a short newsroom checklist for disability coverage: (1) language check, (2) include disabled person/expert, (3) link personal story to systemic data, (4) avoid “scrounger”-type frames, (5) run copy past a disabled advisor where possible. The events in 2025 show this step would reduce recurring harm.

Unpaid and Young carers in Wales have a number of statutory rights under the Social Services and Well-being (Wales) Act 2014, many of which are set out in the Charter for Unpaid Carers.  

Key rights include:

1. Right to Well-being
   Local authorities, health boards, and the Welsh Government must actively promote carers’ well-being, not just focus on the person being cared for. 
2. Right to Information, Advice, and Assistance (IAA)
   Carers are entitled to clear, accessible information about available support, how to access it, and their options and these should be provided in a way that meets linguistic needs (including Welsh). 
3. Right to a Carer’s Needs Assessment
   Local authorities must offer carers a separate assessment of their needs (not just the needs of the person they care for), regardless of the carer’s income.  
4. Right to Be Heard and Have Control
   During assessments, carers should be asked “what matters” to them. They must be involved in decision-making about their support.  
5. Right to Advocacy
   If a carer cannot fully take part in discussions, they are entitled to an advocate to represent their interests.  
6. Right to Direct Payments
   Where local authorities agree, carers can receive direct payments to purchase services that help them, giving them more choice and control.  
7. Rights Around Hospital Discharge
   Carers should be identified early, consulted, and supported when the person they care for is being discharged.  
8. New Employment Leave Rights
   Thanks to the Carers Leave Act 2023, from April 2024 carers in Wales (and the rest of Great Britain) have the right to take up to one week’s unpaid leave per year to provide or arrange care.  

---

Where Welsh Government and Local Authorities Need to Do Better

Despite these rights, there are important gaps between policy and reality. Some of the areas that need improvement:

1. Low Uptake and Poor Awareness
   • According to Carers UK, many carers don’t get their rights in practice: only 6% accessed a needs assessment in one survey, despite it being a legal entitlement.  
   • Information and advice is not always reaching carers: as of recent reporting, fewer than half got relevant advice, and even fewer received it when needed.  
   • Local authorities must do more to proactively identify carers early. Delayed recognition (sometimes years) undermines early intervention.  
2. Inequities in Support and “Postcode Lottery”
   • The Charter enshrines a vision of community-based preventative support and early intervention, but in practice support varies sharply between different Welsh local authorities.  
   • Some carers struggle to access short breaks or respite even though there is national funding (Short Breaks Scheme).  
3. Carer Assessment Delays and Quality Issues
   • A significant proportion Carers report either never receiving a copy of their assessment to check before it is finalised and where they do, many report inaccuracies and a lack of relevance to the discussions that initially took place during the assessment (GDPR).
   • Many unpaid carers are also reporting that they are being told they are not entitled to a needs assessment and are only receiving Information, Advice and Assistance. Many who receive IAA also report the information provided to be unsuitable, such as being told to watch a video on YouTube.
   • When assessments do happen, they may be superficial, or conducted with staff who lack training in the Act’s requirements.
   • Waiting times can be very long (Carers UK has reported waiting of many weeks / months).  
   • There’s insufficient follow-through: local authorities may assess but then not fully meet eligible needs.
   • Clarity of Carers entitlement to reasonable adjustments and Direct Payments
   • Uphold the principals of GDPR by allowing carers access to their own information and allowing them to co-produce the final assessment before it is signed off by a Social Work Manager.
4. Advocacy and Participation
   • The legal right to advocacy is important, but many carers don’t know about it or cannot access an advocate.
   • Some carers report asking to bring along an informal advocate (friend/family member) but are actively discouraged from doing so.
   • Carers are not consistently included in co-production of services. The Charter calls for carers to be equal partners in designing policy / services, but carers report limited involvement in strategy or service design.  
   • Many carers report not being given their entitlement to reasonable adjustments to them to fully participate. 
5. Sustainable Funding
   • Welsh Government has committed funding (e.g., in its 2025-2026 budget: £3.5m for short breaks, £1.75m for the Carers Support Fund).  
   • Long-term stability remains a concern. Short-term or project-based funding may make it hard to sustain services, especially preventative and community-based ones.
   • When examined this funding only reaches 10% (approx) of the Welsh caring population and does not resolve the ongoing challenges faced by unpaid carers.
6. Language and Accessibility
   • While the Charter makes an “active offer” of Welsh language services mandatory, in practice carers report variable access to support in Welsh.  
   • Information, advice, and assessments must be culturally sensitive and accessible, but some carers (young carers, minority language speakers) may still fall through the cracks.
   • Many carers report not being given their entitlement to reasonable adjustments to them to fully participate.

7. Employment, Education and Economic Strain
   • Even with carers leave, unpaid carers often face economic hardship: caring responsibilities can limit work, reduces income during a cost-of-living crisis whilst expenditure increases, and increases stress and isolation.
   • There may be insufficient support to help carers balance work, caring, and training, especially in long-term strategic planning.
   • Despite contributing £10.8 Billion to the Welsh economy per year by bridging the gaps within health and social care the majority of unpaid carers are living in poverty with a percentage of those being in deep poverty. Approximately 70% of carers are also reporting having to spend their own money to cover the costs of caring for a loved one.
   • Young Carers report facing challenges and a lack of support when accessing education at all levels and this needs to be improved.

---

What Needs to Be Done: Recommendations

To better support unpaid carers in Wales, the Welsh Government and local authorities should consider the following:

1. Raise Awareness and Early Identification
   • Run a sustained, well-resourced awareness campaign so carers know their rights (IAA, assessment, advocacy).
   • Ensure health and social care workers are trained to identify carers early (e.g., at GP surgeries, hospital admission, community services).
   • Use data and outreach to proactively reach “hidden carers” (those not yet known or registering with services).
2. Strengthen Carer Assessments
   • Reduce waiting times for carers’ assessments, set clear targets for local authorities.
   • Standardise assessment quality by training staff, monitoring compliance with statutory codes of practice.
   • Ensure assessments explore all aspects of the carer’s life (employment, education, mental health, future planning).
   • Ensure ownership, voice and control
3. Ensure Equitable Access to Breaks and Respite
   • Expand and make consistent the Short Breaks Scheme across Wales, ensuring all local authorities deliver high-quality, flexible respite.
   • Promote creative, community-based respite (peer support, day activities, micro-respite) as well as traditional care-based breaks.
   • Ensure young carers have access to peer groups and activities outside of school to provide them with respite and a life alongside caring
4. Ensure past, present and future unpaid carers
   • have access to peer groups and activities outside of school/work/their caring responsibilities to provide them with respite and a life alongside caring
   • have access and support to attend their own medical appointments
   • have enough financial support to cover the additional costs of caring, food and household bills
   • have access to meaningful and person-centred support when their caring roles come to an end

5. Guarantee Advocacy and Participation
   • Fund and promote independent advocates for carers, especially for those who struggle to represent themselves.
   • Embed unpaid carers in all levels of policymaking: from local authority planning to health board strategies, and Welsh Government advisory groups.
   • Ensure all carers are given their full entitlement to reasonable adjustments to allow them to fully exercise their voice and control. 
6. Sustain and Expand Funding
   • Move from short-term project funding to multi-year, core funding for carers’ services so organisations can plan long term.
   • Increase the resilience of the Carers Support Fund and similar mechanisms.
   • Ensure local authority budgets explicitly value carers’ support when planning social care spending.
7. Language and Accessibility
   • Enforce the “active offer” of Welsh language services in assessment, advice, and support: make this visible, and monitor compliance.
   • Provide accessible information in multiple formats (online, paper, video, BSL) tailored to different carers (young carers, older carers, etc.).
   • Ensure all carers are given their full entitlement to reasonable adjustments to allow them to fully participate in all aspects of their caring life. 
8. Work, Training, Education and Economic Support
   • Support employers in Wales to understand carers’ rights (e.g., Carers Leave Act) and create carer-friendly workplace policies.
   • Provide tailored training and employment support for carers who want to work or retrain, recognizing their caring responsibilities.
   • Explore financial support mechanisms (beyond the Carers Support Fund) to mitigate the economic burden of caring.
   • Ensure Young Carers are supported to access education and that where possible reasonable adjustments are made to ensure they can continue to access education without prejudice.
9. Monitoring, Accountability, and Evaluation
   • Regularly evaluate how well rights (assessment, IAA, break provision) are being delivered across Wales.
   • Publish transparent data on take-up, unmet needs, waiting times, and carers’ satisfaction.
   • Hold local authorities to account; introduce performance targets and reporting around carers’ support and service delivery.

---

Conclusion

Unpaid and Young carers are the backbone of social care in Wales: they provide invaluable support, often at personal cost. While Welsh law gives carers strong rights, there remains a “gap – between what is legally guaranteed and what carers actually experience.”

To close that gap, Welsh Government and local authorities must move from rhetoric to action: investing in identification, assessments, breaks, advocacy, and the long-term sustainability of support. Only then can unpaid carers truly have the rights they are due and the support they deserve.

Charter for unpaid carers  

Social Services and Wellbeing Act (Easy Read)

---

Footnote: When we speak of unpaid carers throughout this document it encompasses both Adult and Young Carers.

Strengthening Rights and Support for Unpaid Carers in Wales

Executive Summary

Unpaid carers are pivotal to the sustainability of health and social care in Wales, and despite having strong legal rights under the Social Services and Well-being (Wales) Act 2014, there are still extensive gaps in identification, recognition, assessment protocols, respite, direct payments, financial support, and meaningful involvement (true co-production) in service planning. This brief sets out priority actions for the Welsh Government, local authorities and other key organisations to ensure carers’ rights are delivered with due regard, consistency and accountability across Wales.

---

1. Context: Why Action Is Needed

• Wales relies heavily on unpaid carers to support older people, disabled people, and those with long-term conditions.
• Carers often face financial strain, declining health, and work–care conflict.
• Although Wales has a strong legislative framework, delivery is inconsistent, and awareness remains low.
• Improving support for unpaid carers aligns with key Welsh Government priorities: prevention, early intervention, well-being, co-production, and sustainability of health and social care.

---

2. Key Challenges

A. Low Awareness of Rights

Many carers are unaware of their entitlement to Information, Advice and Assistance (IAA), Carers Assessments, advocacy, and direct payments.

B. Inconsistent Delivery – the “postcode lottery”

Access to assessments, respite, community support, and breaks varies widely by local authority.

C. Long Assessment Delays and Variable Quality

Some carers wait months for a Carer’s Needs Assessment, and assessments often fail to fully explore carers’ well-being, employment, mental health, or future plans. Furthermore, the quality of assessments and the voice and control within these processes varies extensively across Wales.

D. Limited Access to Respite and Short Breaks

Despite specific funding streams, carers still report difficulty accessing flexible, meaningful breaks which meet their ongoing needs.

E. Weak Implementation of the Welsh Language “Active Offer”

Carers who prefer Welsh support are not always offered bilingual services at the point of need.

F. Under-recognition of Economic and Employment Barriers

Caring responsibilities impact income, career progression, and mental well-being, with insufficient structured support to meet existing and emerging need.

---

3. Priority Actions for the Welsh Government

1. Introduce a National Carer Awareness Campaign

• A sustained public campaign highlighting carers’ rights, how to access assessments, advocacy, respite, and financial support.
• Co-produce messaging with unpaid carers and carer organisations.

2. Establish National Standards for Carers Assessments

• Create a standard assessment model and guidance for all local authorities.
• The standard assessment model should collect data that is used to evaluate and account for the impact of services and support provided to unpaid carers.
• Regular publishing of data that is publicly available to all.
• Require mandatory training, clear timeframes, and consistent recording of outcomes.

3. Expand and Stabilise Funding for Breaks and Preventative Support

• Convert short-term funding pots (e.g., Carers Support Fund, Short Breaks Scheme) into multi-year, ring-fenced allocations.
• Ensure local authorities cannot divert funds to other pressures in social care.

4. Introduce National Monitoring and Accountability Mechanisms

• Require local authorities to publish annual reports on:
  • number of carers identified
  • assessment waiting times
  • unmet needs
  • access to breaks and outcomes
• Publish the data to drive improvement and transparency.

5. Strengthen Workforce Training

• Mandate enhanced training for social workers, hospital discharge teams, and primary care on carers’ rights, early identification and reasonable adjustments
• Include the Welsh Language Standards and “active offer” as core components.

6. Improve Employment Support for Carers

• Encourage employers across Wales to adopt “carer-friendly” policies.
• Promote take-up of leave entitlements and flexible working.
• Fund pilot schemes supporting carers who wish to return to or remain in work.

---

4. Priority Actions for Local Authorities

1. Identify Carers Early and Proactively

• Train frontline staff in health, social care, education, and community services to recognise and record caring roles.
• Build links with GPs, schools, hospitals, and community organisations.

2. Reduce Waiting Times and Improve Assessment Quality

• Set local maximum waiting times.
• Ensure assessments are person-centred, accessible, strengths-based, and focus on “what matters” to the carer.
• Provide advocates automatically when carers face communication or participation barriers and allow for informal support where carers request this.

3. Deliver Flexible, Accessible Respite and Breaks

• Offer a range of break types, including micro-respite, community activities, sitting services, direct payments, and residential options.
• Ensure breaks are culturally appropriate, bilingual where needed, and shaped by carers themselves.

4. Ensure Unpaid Carers Past, Present and Future

• have access to peer groups and activities outside of school/work/their caring responsibilities to provide them with respite and a life alongside caring that recognises the need to reimburse out of pocket expenses.
• have access and support to attend their own medical appointments
• have enough financial support to cover the additional costs of caring, food and household bills
• have access to meaningful and person-centred support when their caring roles come to an end

5. Co-Produce Carer Services and Strategies

• Establish standing carer led advisory panels.
• Engage carers meaningfully in strategy development, service redesign, and commissioning decisions that do not leave the carer out of pocket.

6. Improve Access to Welsh-Medium Support

• Embed the Welsh Language “active offer” in carer assessments, respite services, advice, and communications.
• Audit local provision and address gaps.

---

5. The Case for Investment

Strengthening support for unpaid carers is not only a moral imperative—it is fundamental to the long-term viability of  health and social care in Wales.

Improved carer support leads to:

• reduced carer burnout
• reduced crisis admissions
• more stable care at home
• more sustainable use of social care resources
• better long-term health outcomes for both carers and cared-for people
• improved socio-economic outcomes

Every pound invested in preventative carers’ support saves significantly more in emergency health and social care costs.

---

6. Conclusions

Wales has strong legislation that recognises unpaid carers as equal partners in care. The challenge now is delivery. By improving assessment processes, investing in breaks, raising awareness, ensuring consistent national standards, and embedding co-production, Welsh Government and local authorities can ensure that carers’ rights are not just theoretical—but a lived reality that embraces the living reality of unpaid care.

Unpaid carers keep families together, sustain communities, and uphold the health and social care system. They deserve a system that recognises, values, and supports them.

Charter for unpaid carers  

Social Services and Wellbeing Act (Easy Read)

Footnote: When we speak of unpaid carers throughout this document it encompasses both Adult and Young Carers.

Most people know what a “carer” is.

Fewer people realise that in Britain today, tens of thousands of those carers are children and teenagers.

A young carer is anyone under 18 who helps look after a parent, sibling, or relative who can’t manage daily life without support — perhaps because of illness, disability, addiction, or a long-term mental health condition.

For them, caring is not a future idea — it’s Tuesday morning before school.

What the data shows

The most recent large UK survey data suggests ~1 in 10 young people have caring duties.

That means:

• they help with meds
• they cook
• they clean
• they calm panic attacks
• they translate hospital letters
• they do emotional labour that even adults find heavy

…and they do it mostly quietly, because caring becomes normalised inside their household long before they realise it wasn’t “normal” for everybody else.

The cost of being a child and an adult at the same time

Young carers are statistically more likely to experience:

• school absence
• bullying for being “different”
• poor mental health (especially anxiety)
• poverty (carers are more likely to be in low-income households)
• stepping into adult roles too early

Teachers often describe them as “mature” or “independent” — because they are.
But that maturity often comes from necessity, not choice.

The support gap

Support in the UK is patchy.

Some councils have brilliant young carer leads, drop-in groups, clubs, respite trips.
Some have next-to-nothing beyond a website page.

A huge problem is that young carers are — ironically — hard to spot.
Many families are frightened of telling school or social care because they worry it will trigger intervention or judgement.

What helps young carers most

Every study on this topic keeps pointing to the same three things:

1) Recognition
Someone noticing and naming their role is often the first step to relief.

2) Flexibility at school
Permission to hand work in late or leave a class for a phone call can be life changing.

3) Peer connection
Meeting other young carers stops that isolating “it’s only me” feeling.

If you work with young people — small actions matter

Just asking a simple open question —
“Who do you look after at home?”
— is one of the most powerful safeguarding questions in the UK today.

And if you were a young carer — this is important:

You didn’t imagine how heavy it was.
You weren’t dramatic.
You were a child who carried more than most adults understand.

Organisations to know

(These links are all UK-based and safe to share)

• Carers Trust
• Carers UK
• Barnardo’s Young Carers
• Young Carers Alliance

---

Young carers exist in every town, every postcode, every demographic.
We all see them — but we often don’t recognise what we’re seeing.

One of the kindest things a society can do is make sure children don’t have to carry adult loads alone.

When we talk about “the workforce” in the UK – most people think of employees, employers, tax, payroll, and monthly salaries.

But there is a second workforce.

A workforce without job contracts, without HR departments, without sick pay, without pension contributions, without training budgets.

Unpaid carers.

And what they contribute is not just noble, not just compassionate, not just emotionally significant.

It is economically enormous.

---

The numbers most people don’t know

Carers UK has repeatedly modelled the value of unpaid care.

The latest estimate suggests that unpaid carers in the UK provide care worth over £183 billion a year.

To put that into real-world context:

• It is more than the entire NHS England budget
• It is roughly the size of the UK defence budget four times over
• It is more than the entire value added by the UK construction industry

If unpaid carers stopped tomorrow – the UK health and social care system would collapse instantly.

The state literally could not afford to replace them.

---

The types of work unpaid carers are doing every day

Unpaid care is not random “helping”.

It is structured labour – often harder than many paid roles.

Typical responsibilities include:

• complex medication management
• personal care (washing, dressing, toileting)
• manual handling (transfers, mobility support)
• feeding / nutrition management
• dementia / neuropsychiatric supervision
• appointment coordination
• transport logistics
• behavioural support
• emotional support
• domestic tasks on top (cooking, cleaning, laundry, admin)

This is the same type of skilled labour that paid care workers do.

Just without pay.

---

Caring affects employment – and that affects GDP

A huge proportion of carers reduce their paid work hours – or leave employment entirely.

23% of carers cut back working hours.

One in five leave work altogether.

That reduces:

• tax contributions
• consumer spending
• pension accumulation
• progression in the labour market

We talk about “economic inactivity” in the UK regularly – especially post-COVID.

But unpaid care is one of the largest drivers.

---

The emotional load – another invisible economy

Economists rarely quantify emotional regulation.

But families know it is the most exhausting part.

Holding distress for someone with dementia at 3am.

Managing neurodivergent sensory overload.

Being “the person who absorbs panic”.

There is no substitute for that.

Health outcomes depend on emotional labour – and that is what unpaid carers bankroll in psychological fuel, not money.

---

So what needs to change?

If unpaid carers are doing labour worth £162 billion a year, then any rational economic system would:

1. provide more direct financial support
   Carer’s Allowance is currently below Universal Credit rate per hour of labour input.
2. make employment flexible by default
   Work hours, remote working, protected emergency leave – not optional extras but ordinary HR policy.
3. treat respite as infrastructure, not charity
   Carers need rota breaks the same way paramedics or ICU nurses do.
4. train carers like professionals
   Manual handling, dementia care techniques, communication strategies – these are skills. Training protects carers and the person cared for.

---

The conclusion is simple

Unpaid carers are not a “nice add-on”.

They are the largest pillar of the UK care ecosystem.

They are, in economic terms, a massive national asset propping up the system for free.

If they were recognised, funded, and supported proportionately – the whole state would function better.

And if they ever stopped?

The UK economy would find out – instantly – just how much it depended on them all along.

Being a carer is often described as an act of love — and it is. But what people rarely talk about is how complicated that love can become when you’re also disabled yourself.

When you’re trying to pour from an empty cup, it’s not just exhausting — it’s depleting. You find yourself juggling medication schedules, hospital appointments, social services, and the endless paperwork that never seems to stop coming. And while you’re caring for someone else’s needs, your own often get pushed to the background. Not because you don’t matter, but because there’s simply no time or energy left to fight for yourself.

---

The Invisible Labour

Unpaid carers are the backbone of society — saving governments billions every year — yet most of us feel invisible. There are no clock-ins or pay slips, no pension or holiday entitlement. Just love, duty, and necessity.

For disabled carers, this invisibility can be doubled. The world often assumes that if you’re disabled, you’re the one being cared for, not the one doing the caring. That misunderstanding erases us, making it harder to access support or even recognition.

And when people say, “I don’t know how you do it,” the truth is — neither do we. We just do. Because we have to.

---

Balancing Act (Or Something Like It)

There’s a delicate dance between managing your own health and meeting someone else’s needs. Some days, you find a rhythm — everything just about works. Other days, you hit a wall: pain flares, fatigue sets in, anxiety spikes. And yet the caring doesn’t stop. Meals still need cooking, medication still needs giving, appointments still need attending.

You learn to adapt, to ration your energy like currency. You become a master of planning, improvising, and pretending you’re fine when you’re anything but.

---

Moments of Connection

Still, there are moments — quiet, gentle, precious ones — that make it all feel worthwhile. A shared laugh. A simple thank you. The look in someone’s eyes when they know they’re not alone. Those moments are the heartbeat of caring.

But they shouldn’t have to come at the cost of your wellbeing. You deserve care, too.

---

What Needs to Change

We need better recognition and proper financial support for unpaid carers — especially those of us living with disabilities. Flexible healthcare services, respite options that actually meet our needs, and an end to the assumption that “doing it out of love” means doing it for free.

Caring is love, but it’s also labour. It’s skilled, emotional, and relentless work — and it deserves respect, resources, and rest.

---

A Final Thought

If you’re a disabled unpaid carer reading this: you are not invisible. You are seen, you are valued, and what you’re doing matters — deeply. Please don’t forget that your health and happiness are just as important as the person you care for.

Sometimes caring means fighting for someone else. But sometimes, it also means learning to fight for yourself

If you care for a loved one — a parent, partner, child, or friend — you’re one of thousands of unpaid carers in Waleswho quietly keep families and communities going. You do it out of love, but it’s not easy.

The latest Carers UK State of Caring 2025 report reveals what life is really like for carers today. Across the UK, and here in Wales, carers are taking on more hours of care, often with less support and growing financial strain.

---

Unpaid Carers in Wales: Giving More, Getting Less

More than half of carers (52%) say they’re providing more hours of unpaid care than last year. Many are stepping in where health and social care services are stretched.

As one Welsh carer told Carers Wales:

“It’s 24 hours a day now. I love my mum, but I’ve lost all time for myself. It’s like I’ve disappeared.”

Across Wales, unpaid carers are filling the gaps — organising medication, managing appointments, and providing emotional support — often while juggling work or other family responsibilities.

---

The Cost of Caring in Wales

The cost of living crisis is hitting carers especially hard. Nearly half (49%) say they’ve had to cut back on essentials like heating, food, or transport.

In rural areas of Wales, where travel costs can be higher and services harder to reach, the pressure can be even greater.

Three in four carers (74%) worry about their financial future once their caring role ends — especially those who have had to reduce their working hours or give up their jobs altogether.

“I had to leave work to care for my husband,” shared one carer from Powys. “Now I’m living off savings and worried what happens next.”

If you’re looking for advice on financial help for carers in Wales, organisations like Carers Wales and your local authority can guide you through available benefits and grants.

---

Caring and Health: The Impact on Mind and Body

Caring can take a huge toll on health.

• 42% of carers say their physical health has worsened.
• 74% report feeling anxious or stressed most of the time.

Exhaustion, back pain, and isolation are common experiences. Many carers say they’re simply running on empty.

This is why mental health support for carers in Wales is so important — and why the report calls for more accessible, carer-friendly wellbeing services across the country.

---

Carers Rights in Wales

Wales is ahead of many parts of the UK when it comes to recognising carers. Under the Social Services and Well-being (Wales) Act 2014, every unpaid carer has the right to a Carer’s Needs Assessment from their local council.

This assessment looks at how caring affects your life and what support you might need — such as respite care, training, or wellbeing services.

But as the Carers UK State of Caring 2025 report highlights, the reality is uneven. Some carers in Wales receive excellent support; others wait months for assessments or find services limited by funding.

---

What Needs to Change for Carers in Wales

The report calls for stronger national action to make caring sustainable. Key priorities include:

• A dedicated Carers Strategy for Wales, co-designed with carers.
• More financial support for carers struggling with living costs.
• Expanded respite and replacement care so carers can take proper breaks.
• More carer-friendly workplaces and flexible working options.
• Greater investment in social care, to reduce pressure on unpaid carers.

These changes would help ensure that carers in Wales can care for loved ones without sacrificing their own health or future.

---

Where to Find Support for Carers in Wales

If you’re a carer, remember — you’re not alone, and help is out there.

• Visit Carers Wales for advice, online support groups and wellbeing resources.
• Contact your local authority to request a Carer’s Needs Assessment.
• Connect with local carers networks — talking to others who understand can make a huge difference.

And if you know someone who’s a carer — reach out. A simple message, a cuppa, or an offer to help can mean more than you realise.

---

Let’s Make Caring in Wales Visible and Valued

Unpaid carers in Wales are the heartbeat of our communities. They’re keeping loved ones safe and independent, often with little recognition or rest.

The State of Caring 2025 report reminds us that carers need more than thanks — they need real, practical support and systems that work for them.

When we support carers, we build stronger, kinder communities for everyone. ❤️

👉 Read the full report: Carers UK – State of Caring 2025
👉 Get support in Wales: http://www.carerswales.org

My right shoulder is certainly the gift that keeps on giving. After seeking a second opinion regarding my continued lack of range of movement in my right arm I was told that I likely have a torn rotator cuff and will need an ultrasound scan to see the extent of the damage and whether or not it can be repaired.

So, I am now facing the possibility of two further surgeries, one to hopefully repair the rotaor cuff and a further surgery to replace the shoulder IF the rotator cuff can be repaired.

Now for the dilemma, I am a full-time unpaid carer for both of my parents and receive no support from the local authority or any other services so my recovery will be difficult. If the rotator cuff can be repaired I am looking at 6 weeks in a sling to immobile the shoulder and then a further 6-12 months recovery time and physio. Then if I have the shoulder replaced it will likely be a further long recovery period. So, the dilemma is do I even bother having the surgery in the first place as I know my recovery will be made more difficult by having to continue to provide care with no support or do I have the surgery and hope for the best whilst preparing for the worst.

Social care in the UK has been decimated and it doesn’t look like things are going to improve any time soon, so I know that getting any kind of support during my recovery will be next to impossible.

As I wrote in yesterday’s blog, I recently sustained serious injuries after a fall back in October last year that changed my life and way of doing things possibly for the rest of my life.

Last night I received a phone call from my GP surgery that very likely explains why the fractures I sustained to my humerus were so bad. 

Earlier this month a attended a hospital appointment to have a bone density scan and last night I found out the scan had shown that I have osteoporosis which could also explain why the fractures haven’t healed properly.

I was told that the hospital has asked for further tests to be run and that I will need to start taking vitamin D supplements and not very much else. To be honest the news came as somewhat of a shock that I didn’t have the headspace to ask questions, but I will be asking to speak with my GP on Monday. I did avoid going down the Dr Google rabbit hole, however.

So, there you have it, living proof that it really does only take a matter of seconds, and your life can be changed forever.