A new report from Carers Scotland reveals that unpaid carers across Scotland trying to juggle caring responsibilities with work are being let down by national and local government as well as employers.

In a survey of 1,771 unpaid carers, 71% shared their experience with employment – with many highlighting that respite support to allow carers to work comes only when they reach a crisis point.

One carer said:

“Having been Mum’s carer for many years I was naïve in having her move in with me, given the dementia diagnosis. The support networks for carers aren’t beneficial for workers as they are very often during the day.

“It wasn’t until I was at breaking point that I was referred to the local authority support worker who did my carer’s assessment and worked out the respite hours I could have. There was no response to why this only happened in a crisis.”

This echoes a carer’s call for more support with health and employment when she addressed last year’s Global Ageing Conference, sharing that many carers reach a “tipping point” from neglecting their needs to focus on caring responsibilities.

The survey from Carers Scotland heard that 32% of unpaid carers of working age had given up work completely while 27% reduced their hours to due to caring responsibilities.

Over a third of those responding said that they would like to return to work or increase their hours if the right support was available.

Access to social care

As a result of the loss of work from a lack of support in caring, Carers Scotland estimates that over half of working age unpaid carers lose £12,000 of income a year.

Nearly a quarter of those who had to give up a job to care explained that they did so because of a ‘lack of suitable services to provide replacement care’ that would have enabled them to work.

The most important factor identified by survey respondents to help them balance work and care was ‘more reliable’ health and social care services, followed by ‘affordable and accessible’ care.

Only 6% said that they had reliable health and social care support to help them with juggling work and care.

Sue McLintock, Carer Positive Manager for Carers Scotland said:

“A lack of support to enable carers both to stay in and return to paid work can have profound and long-lasting impacts. The loss of income and opportunity that carers face – whether they can remain in employment or not – is shocking.

“With nearly half of working age carers (49%) saying that they have been caring for 10 years or more this could amount to hundreds of thousands of lost pounds over their caring journey.”

To support carers to remain in, and return to, work, the charity says the Scottish government must ensure short- and long-term funding for sufficient social care services for carers.

Carers Scotland is also urging the government to ‘move at pace’ to deliver changes to eligibility for Carer Support Payment to ensure that it does limit carers’ employment choices.

It says that government must work with local partners to improve the flexibility of short breaks for carers who are in employment.

Additionally, it is calling for the local authorities and health and social care partnerships to ensure their guidelines, care planning and practice all include actions that enable carers to work.

Supportive workplaces

Carers Scotland says this report also highlights the ‘significant importance’ of a supportive workplace those responding to the survey, with half saying this helped them balance work and caring responsibilities.

More than half of the working carers responding to the survey were caring for 35 hours or more each week alongside part-time or full-time employment.

One in five of the carers who said they gave up work to care, highlighted an unsupportive workplace as a key reason for leaving employment.

The charity revealed the benefits gained from working, with 61% of working carers reporting that being in employment improved their health and wellbeing.

One carer shared their experience of needing to reduce their work once their children became too old to have five days of school, meaning they required more home care:

“I was forced to go part time to plug the care gaps, with all the implications that had financially and emotionally.

“My mental health is strongest when I have a work/care/life balance, and I struggle most when my ability to work and provide for my family is restricted by inadequate care provision.

“I can feel deep sadness that I haven't been able to meet my potential at work or provide better for my daughters due to the limitations of my caring role.” 

Beyond its recommendations to government, Carers Scotland is also urging employers to make changes that support carers.

It is calling for all employers to raise awareness and to promote a positive culture of understanding and support for unpaid carers – and for managers to be trained in how to best support carers.

Carers Scotland’s Ms McLintock added:

“There is a pressing need for employers, the Scottish and local government to do more to ensure that carers have the right support – at work and for their caring role – to remain in or return to employment if they wish to.”

Read more: Money matters for poverty and health in Scotland; Carers at a health and poverty tipping point; Carers in ‘devastating’ financial hardship; Insight: The health benefits of being able to work; Carers facing full force of health and care crisis

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