Carers Rights Day 2022

This year Carers Rights Day takes place on Thursday 24 November 2022 under the theme of Caring Costs.

Caring unpaid for a family member has always come at a financial cost. Carers Trust research has found that almost half (48%) of all unpaid family carers have had to give up work so they have the time to provide the dedicated care a family member needs.

However, there are other costs associated with being an unpaid carer, too. Many unpaid carers find it difficult to get out to see friends and wider family, and this can have a cost on their physical health and mental wellbeing.

These costs are now being exacerbated by the cost-of-living crisis.

On 29 November this year Carers Trust will be publishing results from an extensive survey of carers that show the impact of the cost-of-living crisis on unpaid carers. Keep an eye on the Carers Trust homepage and on Carers Trust social media from 29 November to see the results of the survey.

With the cost of caring rising so rapidly, it’s important unpaid carers understand their rights and are able to access support that’s available to them locally.

That’s why Carers Rights Day this year aims to:

  • Ensure carers are aware of their rights
  • Help carers to find out where they can get support in their area
  • Raise awareness of the very real pressures unpaid carers are facing and the support they need

How you can find support in your area

If you're an unpaid carer in need of advice or support, get in touch with your local carer organisation. There are over 124 local carer services in the Carers Trust network.

What is Carers Trust doing to promote carers’ rights for Carers Rights Day?

In Scotland Carers Trust Scotland is delighted to be  working in partnership with NHS for Education Scotland (NES) on an animation video that aims to support young carers - See Me, Include Me and Support Me. Carers Trust supported young carers to have their voices heard in describing their real life experience dealing with health and social care. The young carers are really proud of their work. They had input on characters, music and scripts for the video. Two young carers went on to provide voice overs as they wanted it to sound authentic. They now want to see this animation shared far and wide so all professionals are aware of who young carers are and how they can be better supported!

In Wales: To mark Carers Rights Day the Welsh Government and the Deputy Minister will be issuing a statement in which they will show what they are doing to support unpaid carers in Wales through grants and funded respite breaks. In addition, Carers Trust Wales is holding an online engagement event with adult carers on the 22nd of November. This is part of the Welsh Government funded carer engagement work.

In England Carers Trust is working with the Children’s Society as part of it its Young Carers in Schools (YCiS) partnership. We have produced a step-by-step guide for education professionals to help them better identify and support young carers in schools.

Read our press release promoting the guide to education sector press which we issued on Carers Rights Day.

Carers Stories

Find out more about the challenges faced by unpaid carers. 

Read Carina's story

Read Richard's story