Campaign with us: carersuk.org/needabreak
to take breaks simply aren’t
enough.
No wonder carers describe
themselves as close
to breaking point and
desperate for time to
themselves – to recuperate
and see friends and family.
“Just to have a complete
day free would be magical,”
said one carer. Carers UK
is calling for an increase to
and a ringfence around the
funding that provides carers
with breaks. We want to
see greater transparency
and consistency locally over
breaks.
Those planning and
delivering care services and
breaks locally must to do
better at understanding the
needs of their population
so that appropriate support
is there for everyone,
whatever their condition is.
To make all this possible
we need more funding for
social care.
Get involved
Do you agree?
Campaign with us
carersuk.org/needabreak
Thank you
Thank you to
everyone that
completed the
2017 State of
Caring survey.
carersuk.org/stateofcaring
State of Caring
2017
If you would like to read the
report please visit:
carersuk.org/ state-of-
caring-report-2017
@carersuk
/carersuk
“Just to have a
complete day
free would be
magical”
The silent epidemic
From 14 August to 17
September Carers UK
is leading the Jo Cox
Commission’s focus on
carers.
The Commission was
conceived by the late Jo
Cox MP to understand
and tackle the causes of
loneliness. Since her death
this work has been taken
forward – co-chaired by
Rachel Reeves MP and
Seema Kennedy MP and
with the support of several
charities.
The difficulty of taking
time away from our caring
role is a major contributor
to loneliness. We can be
left feeling trapped and
isolated, unable to take
part in social activities
or relationships, or look
after our own health and
wellbeing.
There are other
contributors to loneliness
though.
Besides breaks, one of the
main causes of loneliness
is understanding.
Caring can be messy. It
can be painful – both in the
difficulties faced by those
we’re looking after, and
the challenges we face
ourselves as carers.
Carers UK member Dawn
Hart (above) explains,
“At times of crisis you
quickly learn that most
people would rather bury
their heads. I remember
one friend visiting my child
in hospital and the look on
her face summed up the
fear I sensed in everyone
around us.”
This summer we’ll
highlight the impact of
loneliness on carers and
shine a light on the causes.
Alongside our efforts to
improve access to breaks,
we’ll be seeking to share
real stories to improve
understanding.
Will you help build the
conversation?
carersuk.org/loneliness
17