Unpaid Carers Are Caring For Longer Hours Each Week And Facing Mounting Personal Costs

Unpaid carers, whose finances, health and ability to work are already impacted by their caring responsibilities, say the pressure of caring is unrelenting – with over half (52%) experiencing a rise in the number of hours they spend caring each week in the last year.

New results from Carers UK’s State of Caring Survey 2025, bringing together the experiences of over 10,500 people looking after a family member or friend, highlight an unsustainable situation for the UK’s 5.8 million unpaid carers.

Unpaid carers in the UK already provide care worth £184.3 billion each year, but they are increasingly being relied on to provide more and more care against a backdrop of rising costs, insufficient funding and staff shortages within the UK’s health and social care system.

There are worrying consequences for those caring for longer hours, who are more likely to experience poor mental and physical health themselves. 42% of carers answering this year’s survey say their physical health has worsened and 20% have experienced an injury because of caring. 74% say they feel stressed or anxious, some are experiencing panic attacks and are unable to sleep because of this.

As the cost of living crisis continues carers – who already face additional costs such as higher electricity bills – are also feeling increasingly stressed and anxious when they think about their financial situation.

Nearly half (49%) of unpaid carers say they have cut back on essentials such as food, heating, clothing and transport costs, while a third (32%) say they have taken out a loan from the bank, used credit cards or a bank account overdraft. 74% of carers say they are worried about the impact that their caring role will have in the future, including supporting themselves financially after their caring role has come to an end.

61% of working carers responding to this year’s survey say caring has affected the type of employment they have taken on. An increase in hours spent caring often impacts employment, every day around 600 people in the UK give up work to provide unpaid care.

35% of working carers say they have reduced their working hours and a fifth (21%) say they have taken on a lower paid or more junior role that fits better with their caring responsibilities. Statistics published by DWP in March 2025 found that the cost to the economy of unpaid carers being out of work is £37 billion a year.

Previous research from Carers UK has found that 62% of carers who are currently providing or have previously provided unpaid care felt they had no choice in taking on the role because no other care options were available.

Helen Walker, Chief Executive at Carers UK, said:
“A worrying number of people are taking on increasing hours of care each week at a significant cost to their health and finances as a result. For those whose employment is impacted, the consequences of limited earnings and pension contributions greatly reduce their prospects for financial independence in the future.

“Given the fact that very few people feel they have a choice about caring, we have both a moral and an economic obligation to support unpaid carers. Many are under considerable stress living a life defined by their caring responsibilities. We need to start valuing their contributions because when they leave the workplace or experience burnout, this has wider consequences for workplaces and health services.

“These findings come at a time when the Government is moving forwards in several critical areas, including an independent commission on adult social care. Concrete action to deliver better rights and support for carers within plans to reform the NHS, review workplace rights and social security benefits has never been more urgently needed. Without this, unpaid carers will continue to struggle with devastating consequences for individuals, those they care for, and society as a whole.”