Unpaid carers penalised by Scotland's underfunded care system
The number of unpaid carers has soared by 14% since the 2022 Census, where there were 627,715. But despite that, support for them and the person they support is decreasing, according to two leading charities.
A report published for Carers Week found that 36% of all unpaid carers who were struggling to make ends meet reported 'bad' or 'very bad' mental health, while 28% reported worsening physical health.
The issue skyrocketed amongst black and minority ethnic (BME) unpaid carers, with 60% reporting worsening physical health, and 40% mental health.
Many of the concerns centred around finances, with 12% of all unpaid carers admitting to skipping meals, while 11% did not eat for a whole day to make ends meet.
Becky Duff, director of the Carers Trust in Scotland, told The Herald that unpaid carers provide around £15.9 billion worth of care each year.
She said: 'Unpaid carers are keeping our health and social care system working. Yet, they are consistently unsupported.
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'We're seeing an increased reduction in the support services that unpaid carers use so actually while unpaid care is increasing, the support around them is decreasing.'
She added: 'What we hear often from carers is this isolation that they often feel. Many carers, because of their caring role, will have to reduce or give up work.
'They will be less able to be involved in social activities and actually their identities become less and less.
'These are the people who are holding up our health and care system but they are effectively being penalised for it.'
The Care Reform Bill, which passed in Holyrood on Tuesday, pledges social care reforms, including breaks for unpaid carers.
It means councils will have a duty to decide if a carer is able to take sufficient breaks from their role, and provide support or respite if they are not.
This could be 'transformational', Ms Duff said – but only if it is matched with significant funding.
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Richard Meade, director of Carers Scotland, told The Herald more than 150,000 carers in Scotland were already providing more than 50 hours per week of care.
'Unpaid carers are increasingly expected to fill the growing care gap that is developing in Scotland and often at the expense of their own health,' he said.
However, he said the Scottish Government did not currently have the 'sufficient' services in place to meet the needs of carers and the cared for person to allow for breaks to happen.
He added: 'Unpaid care in Scotland is in the midst of a public health crisis, with carers experiencing huge inequities when compared to those not in a caring role.
'Carers provide the equivalent of £15.9bn in health and social care every year in Scotland – almost the equivalent of a second NHS. Carers are entitled to a good quality of life alongside their caring role, and we must act now to ensure that they do before it is too late, as without them our NHS and social care system would collapse.'
An estimated 28,000 under-18s are caring for a relative, the report also revealed.
It is estimated that 37% of the Scottish adult population – 1.7 million people, have provided unpaid care at some point in their lives.
The Care Reform Bill has been scaled back over the last year and was meant to provide a National Care Service – the centralisation of social care in Scotland.
However, ministers dropped the plans due to widescale opposition.
The Scottish Government has been asked for comment.
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