Hidden army of male carers receive little support and are socially isolated

The Carers Trust is calling for male carers to be given more support after it found they are often unrecognised and unsupported.

The report ‘Husband, Dad, Son, Boyfriend, Carer?’ was commissioned by the charities, The Carers Trust and the Men’s Health Forum, to look into the experiences and needs of male carers.

The report revealed that a quarter of men surveyed were employed but also cared for someone for more than 60 hours per week and four in ten male carers said that they never had a break from their caring role.

Just over half of male carers aged 18-64 said being a carer had a negative impact on their mental health and 55 per cent said that their health was ‘fair or poor’.

The report also found male carers who don’t work due to their caring role, felt especially isolated.

Thea Stein, chief executive of Carers Trust said: “Caring is often regarded as a female issue but the statistics tell us differently. More than four in ten of the UK’s unpaid carers are male – which means an enormous 2.5 million men in the UK.

“Despite this they are often not recognised and go unsupported. Men who are caring often don’t feel able to ask for support at work, and often feel that support services are based around the needs of women. We need to ensure employers, families and communities support the dads, brothers, partners and sons in our communities carrying out this vital role.”

Male carers under 65 in England are also more likely to visit their GP than the rest of the male population, visiting four times per year – but despite this their health is often still poor and many are not identified as being male carers and so do not get support, according to the report.

Male carers interviewed as part of the research commented ‘I am not able to attend to mum’s personal hygiene care, I did try but I felt awkward.’

While another said ‘I believe our society look upon male carers differently to female carers, it is often expected of a daughter/granddaughter to provide care whereas a male relative is often thought of as a wage earner.’

Martin Tod, chief executive of the Men’s Health Forum urged employers “to recognise that men can be carers too”. He added that “health and social care services needs to do more to address the physical and mental health needs of male carers - especially the hidden carers who may not be known to the system. Both employers and health services need to do more to provide the tailored support that male carers need”.

The research found that over half of male carers do not currently receive help and support from a local carers organisation. Over a quarter of these male carers said this was because they were not aware of the support that may be available to them in their local area.

In response to these findings, the two charities are calling for commissioners to consider developing services to specifically meet the needs of male carers of all age groups.