FAMILY CARE A FULL-TIME JOB Bid to ease toll on millions who look after a loved one
FAMILY carers spend longer looking after loved ones than the average full-time employee spends at work. Tasks such as personal care, feeding, dressing, lifting and giving medication take up an average of 42 hours per week, research by national disability charity Sense reveals.
Meanwhile, almost a third of carers will spend more than 48 hours providing care, and one in six more than 72 hours.
As a result, nearly two thirds of carers looking after disabled family members describe themselves as exhausted and/or burnt out,
Despite the long hours, many carers are unable to take a break from their responsibilities. More than a third do not receive any help to take a meaningful break, with one in five unable to remember the last time they got some respite.
Richard Kramer, chief executive of Sense, said: “Caring for someone with complex disabilities is often demanding, non-stop work, and takes its toll physically and mentally.
“Yet sadly, family carers across the country are missing out on a being able to take a meaningful break from these responsibilities.
“The pandemic and now the cost of living crisis has made the situation worse, with carers taking on even greater caring responsibilities and receiving less support, with their health and wellbeing suffering as a result. Many are simply burned-out.”
Sense has a launched a new campaign calling for greater respite support for families.
Respite services are available for families, offering temporary care that lets a carer take a break from looking after their loved one. However, the support available varies widely across the country, and families complain that some services paused during the pandemic have not resumed.
Sense: Tel. 0300 330 9256. www.sense.org.uk/GiveCarersABreak