Carers’ benefits and rights: What you can claim as a carer

What can you claim as an unpaid carer?

There are estimated to be nearly 6 million unpaid carers in the UK looking after a family member or friend. Having someone dependent on you can be draining for your health and wellbeing not to mention your finances. Some people have to give up work entirely to care for someone while others have to go part-time. This is why it is important to find out what benefits are available for carers.

Recognising that you are a carer is important as there may be support and benefits out there that you can access and you will find you have rights as a carer.

It is against the law for someone to force you to be a carer or demand you carry out certain tasks. Remember it is the local authority which has a Duty of Care for adults that require care and support.

Right to support under the Care Act 2014

The Care Act 2014 gives unpaid carers over the age of 18 in England the right to support from their local authority.​ It gives carers as much right to support as the people they care for.

The Social Services and Well-being (Wales) Act 2014 and Carers (Scotland) Act 2016 also give carers in Wales and Scotland the right to support based on their identified needs.

Right to a Carer’s Assessment

As well as your rights, it is crucial to be aware of what benefits carers are entitled to as caring can cause huge financial hardships.

A Carer’s Assessment will look at whether caring is impacting on your wellbeing and your health. The assessment is free and available to anyone over the age of 18.

If your local authority assesses you and finds you are eligible for certain carers’ benefits, you may be able to get practical, emotional and financial help. You don’t need to live with the person you are caring for or be their sole carer to request a Carer’s Assessment.

The support can include respite care for the person you care for as well as equipment such as a mobility scooter giving the person you care for greater independence.

Unpaid carers can also get help with housework and access counselling.

In terms of financial support, your local authority may be able to give you help with money towards travel and transport costs while caring.

In Scotland, a carer’s assessment is sometimes referred to as adult carer support plan.

What benefits can you claim as a carer?

Recently Carers UK published a report finding 1 in 6 (16%) unpaid carers are in debt due to being in a caring role. This rose to 2 in 5 (40%) for unpaid carers in receipt of Carer’s Allowance.

Nearly 8% of unpaid carers in receipt of Carer’s Allowance are using food banks to cope with the cost of living crisis, compared to 5% of all unpaid carers.

Seventy-nine per cent of carers report feeling stressed or anxious, 49% are depressed, while 44% of carers have put off health treatment because of their caring role, according to Carers UK.

So it is crucial to be aware of what benefits carers can claim and what your legal rights are if you are an employee.

Carer’s Allowance

You may also be eligible for Carer’s Allowance which is the main benefit for carers.

Carer’s Allowance is currently £81.90 a week, which is £327.60 a month.

Carer’s Allowance is taxable and you must be earning less than £151 a week after tax and caring for a family member or a friend for at least 35 hours a week to be eligible to receive it.

Chancellor Rachel Reeves announced in the Budget that the earnings threshold for unpaid carers will increase by £45 a week.

So unpaid carers who care for someone for at least 35 hours a week will be able to earn up to £196 a week from April 2025 and still claim Carer’s Allowance.

You can apply for this carers’ benefit from the Department of Work and Pensions (DWP)

Carer’s Credit

If you are receiving Carer’s Allowance you will be automatically eligible for Carer’s Credit.

Carer’s Credit is a carers’ benefit which gives National Insurance credits which count towards your National Insurance contributions.

What if you don’t fit the eligibility criteria for Carer’s Allowance?

If you don’t fit the eligibility criteria for Carer’s Allowance you may still be eligible for the underlying entitlement and this will mean you will be able to claim other benefits.

These include:

• Free prescriptions

• Free dental treatment

• Cold Weather Payment

• Warm Home Discount

• Free TV licence if you are 75+

​Benefits for carers who also have care needs

If you too have care needs you can also claim Personal Independence Payment (PIP) and this will not affect your Carer’s Allowance payments. Similarly you can also claim Attendance Allowance and this will not affect your Carer’s Allowance.

​However if you claim Working Tax Credit and Child Tax Credit, claiming Carer’s Allowance may affect your entitlement to these benefits as Carer’s Allowance is considered taxable income.

​Carer’s Element of Universal Credit

If you are claiming Universal Credit and are caring for someone for at least 35 hours a week, you may also be eligible for Carer’s Element of Universal Credit.

Free flu jab

If you are the main carer for someone who is older or disabled and they will be at risk if you become ill or you claim Carer’s Allowance your GP should offer you a free flu jab. In addition you should be in the priority group for a Covid booster jab.

Do carers get free council tax?

If you live with the person you care for and care for them at least 35 hours a week you will not have to pay council tax.

Rights at Work

Juggling work with caring for someone can be very difficult as you can feel torn in two directions. However work can be a lifesaver for some as it gives them respite away from the person they are caring for as well as of course money.

Some carers end up being forced to give up work as caring takes over and becomes a full-time job in itself.

Juggling work and caring commitments

If you do want to remain in employment there are things you can do to help you juggle both your work and your caring commitments.

• Talk to your employer. Explain what is going on and they may be able to make adjustments to your work pattern to give you more flexibility. If you have been working for your employer for 26 consecutive weeks you should have a statutory right to ask for flexible working and your employer will be obliged to consider it and will have to give you a good reason for refusing it. If your contract does not give you the statutory right you can still ask for flexible working but your employer does not have to consider your request. Flexible working includes asking for part time hours, changing your work hours to fit with your caring duties and condensing your working hours into fewer days. If your employer is unsure you can always try asking for a trial period to see how it would work.
• Taking time off in an emergency – You are entitled to take time off work if there is an emergency concerning a close family member or someone you care for. Some employers call this time off ‘dependant leave’ and it tends to be unpaid leave but in some cases employers do give paid leave.
• Hospital appointments – you will not be able to get ‘dependant’ leave if it is for a planned event such as a hospital appointment. In that case you will probably have to take it as paid annual leave.

Carer’s Leave in 2025

From 6 April 2024, carers will have the right to Carer’s Leave due to the Carers Leave Act passed in May 2023. This Act will give carers five days unpaid leave from work every 12 months. It will apply to employees in England, Scotland and Wales.

When is Carers’ Rights Day?

Carers’ Rights Day is held every November by Carers UK to raise awareness of unpaid carers’ rights.

There is also Carers Week which this year was held on 10-16 June 2024. It is an annual campaign to raise awareness of caring and highlight the vital role unpaid carers play in the UK.

Support groups

Getting help when you are a carer is not just about financial support and knowing your rights. It is also about meeting others in the same situation as yourself and knowing you are not alone.

Claudieon Roberts cares full-time for her husband and her son and says she would have “gone under” if it hadn’t been for the help from Carers Support West Sussex.

She became a carer for her husband six years ago after an accident whilst working at Gatwick Airport, which left him with a traumatic brain injury and Functional Neurological Disorder.

At the time of the accident, she worked full-time as an IT technician in the City of London. She was forced to give up work and become her husband’s full-time carer after her employer refused to let her work hours that fitted with her caring role.

She said: “I take him to appointments and run the household because his processing of information is a challenge. You can speak to him and he seems quite together but it does take him a long time to actually grasp things. So, at times, I have to be his brain, and generally keep things running day to day in our home.”

As well as looking after her husband, Claudieon is also a carer for her 26-year-old son who had a breakdown after completing his Masters degree at university and suffered psychosis.

‘If I didn’t have Carers Support West Sussex I think I’d have gone under’

She admits: “If I didn’t have Carers Support West Sussex I think I’d have gone under. They were really there for me in ways that I didn’t expect from a charity, like providing me with a sum of money from the Carers Fund towards the purchase a laptop so I can indulge in my love of writing, as my respite.”

Claudieon goes to an in-person carers group as well as an online mental health carers group.

She said “I met a lot of incredible, intelligent people who were facing situations similar to mine. Though we all have challenging lives, it was uplifting to hear their accounts and the small victories achieved in their caring role which makes all the difference to your mood and gives you that push to keep going.”

Helpful organisations

Carers UK

Carers Trust