State of Caring Carers UK State of Caring 2017 Report | Page 30
STATE OF CARING REPORT 2017
Appendix
A total of 7,286 carers and former carers responded to Carers UK’s annual
State of Caring Survey between March and May 2017.
Only responses for the current 6,607 carers who completed the survey are
included in this report as it is designed to provide a snapshot of caring in 2017.
However, Carers UK will be using the responses of former carers in other pieces
of work throughout the year.
Compared to the carer population as a whole, respondents to this survey were
more likely to be female and caring for a high number of hours every week.
Of respondents to the State of Caring Survey 2016 who are currently caring:
• 75% live in England, 10% live in Scotland, 7% live in Wales and 9% live in
Northern Ireland
• 78% are female and 21% are male
• 26% consider themselves to have a disability
• Only 1% are aged 0-24, 4% are aged 25-34, 13% are aged 35-44, 29% are
aged 45-54, 34% are aged 55-64, 15% are aged 65-74 and 4% are aged 75
and over
• 3% are lesbian, gay or bisexual.
• 19% also have childcare responsibilities for a non-disabled child under 18
• 37% are in paid work (46% full-time and 41% part-time)
• 33% have been caring 15 years or more, 15% for between 10-14 years, 23%
for 5-9 years, 25% for 1-4 years and just 3% have been caring for less than
one year
• 50% care for 90 or more hours every week, while 16% care for 50-89 hours,
23% for 20-49 hours and 11% care for 1-19 hours a week
• Most (76%) care for one person, 18% care for two people, 4% for three
people and 2% care for four or more people
Endnotes
i Census 2011
ii Carers Week (2016), Building Carer Friendly Communities,
Research report for Carers Week 2016
iii Census 2011
iv The Health Foundation (2017) Election briefing:
NHS and social care funding: Three unavoidable challenges.
v ADASS 2016 Budget Survey
vi Census 2011
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