‘THE COST OF LIVING IS RISING – BUT BENEFITS AREN’T!’

Kati Williams, 40, has been caring for her elderly grandparents Andrea, 82, and Graham, 84, since the first lockdown in March 2020.

In between looking after her four young children aged between 10 and two, as well as emotionally supporting her sister, Jordanne, 28, who has autism and anxiety, she has a lot on her plate.

Kati, a single mother from Wrexham, says, “My nan has Alzheimer’s disease and vascular dementia, among other health difficulties, and my granddad has a degenerative back condition, an aneurysm, and high blood pressure so they rely on me to do everything from their shopping to fulfilling their basic care needs and transporting them to doctor’s appointments. I go to see them for at least two hours every day between taking my kids to school, and caring for them.”

Kati relies on monthly benefits, including carers’ allowance, the lowest benefit of its kind, which pays just £69.70 per week and is available to carers who provide more than 35 hours of unpaid care a week.

Kati says, “My car is my lifeline and with rising petrol prices, I don’t know if I’m going to be able to keep running it. It’s literally going to be a choice between eating and a warm house. I may end up having to use food banks to feed my children.

“I’ve already bought provisions for the winter, including fleecy quilts, blankets, and hot water bottles to stay warm. But how are you meant to make savings when you already turn everything off, use the heating sparingly and shop at the cheapest supermarkets?”

And she’s calling on the government to listen to unpaid carers and increase pay in the sector. She says, “The cost of living is going up but the benefits aren’t rising with it.

“No one does this for fun, I’m doing this because I have to.”