The Cost Of Caring – The Impact Of Caring Across Carers’ Lives – New Carers UK research

Based on over 10,500 survey responses to its State of Caring 2025 survey, the report lays bare the profound and multifaceted costs that are borne by the UK’s 5.8 million unpaid carers.

It provides detailed analysis of how financial pressures, inadequate support, and increasing caring responsibilities are affecting unpaid carers’ lives.

Key findings include:

• Over half (52%) of carers are providing more hours of care than last year.
• Nearly half (49%) are cutting back on essentials due to financial pressures.
• Among working carers, 35% have reduced their hours and 21% have taken a lower-paid or more junior role to fit caring around work.
• 74% are worried about their future financial security.
• A majority (68%) need more support to look after their own health and wellbeing.

Carers UK said: "The report sets out a comprehensive set of policy recommendations to create a fairer settlement for carers, including a new National Carers Strategy, improved financial and employment support, and stronger health and equality protections.

"The contribution unpaid carers make through the care they provide – valued at £184 billion annually, equivalent to the NHS budget – is vast and indispensable. Yet, as our evidence shows, the personal toll on carers can be immense.

"Unless urgent action is taken, carers will continue to shoulder increasingly unmanageable responsibilities, with grave consequences not only for their own lives but for the sustainability of health and social care services and the wider economy."

You can download the full report and recommendations here, and can also download a two-page executive summary here