Carers could be missing out on £17.9 million in benefits

Carers in Greater Manchester could be missing out on £17.9 million of benefits that they’re entitled to, a national charity has claimed.

Anti-poverty charity Turn2us estimates that of the 280,000 carers in Manchester, more than 5,200 people are not claiming the £3,440 they are entitled to per year in carers’ allowance.

The charity has its own online benefits calculator and has used that, carer surveys, its own research and research from universities and think tanks across Greater Manchester and the UK to calculate that estimate.

Carer’s allowance is money for people who spend at least 35 hours a week providing regular care to someone who has a disability.

You don’t have be related to the person you are caring for and it doesn’t matter if you are in or out of work to claim the support payments, but you cannot be earning more than £123 per week.

Sara Willcocks, the charity’s head of communications, said: “Caring for someone is a huge responsibility and research shows that carers are disproportionately socially and economically vulnerable.

“Most carers give up their working and personal lives to care for family or friends.

“Carer’s allowance is there to be claimed but so many are missing out.

“We implore anyone who cares for someone for more than 35 hours a week to do a benefit check and see what their entitlements are.”

Andy Burnham, Mayor of Greater Manchester, said: “Carers are too often the forgotten workforce in our society.

“Unpaid and underappreciated, if you are caring for someone vulnerable then access to all available support, including the carers’ allowance, is vital.

“Carers often operate under immense stress and have very little free time – it must be made as straightforward and simple as possible for them to be able to get the assistance they need and to which they are entitled.”

The mayor said the Greater Manchester Combined Authority (GMCA) understands the pressures of life as a carer, and wants to assist the 280,000 people in the region ‘who contribute invaluably to our community’.

The GMCA and health bosses at Greater Manchester’s Health and Social Care Partnership (HSCP) have also set out a carers’ charter – a document that sets out how the region aims to support carers; whether that’s by helping them into work, improving their health or protecting their welfare.

Mr Burnham added: “Any carer living in Greater Manchester deserves our gratitude and we stand ready to support in any way we can.”

Warren Heppolette, strategy executive at Greater Manchester’s HSCP, said: “People often don’t think of themselves as a carer and they may not know they are entitled to support.

“We have made improvements over the last couple of years that have led to thousands more people receiving help.”

Mr Heppolette said GPs should always ask if someone considers themselves a carer during visits and hospital staff must refer people to carer support services if they need it, for example, when a relative leaves hospital.

He added: “Employers also have a big role to play in identifying carers and they can help by allowing their staff to work flexibly around their caring responsibilities.”

A spokesperson for the Department of Work and Pensions, which oversees the benefit system, did not address questions about what the department is doing to spread awareness of benefit entitlement or what it is doing to support carers in Greater Manchester.

They said: “There are 850,000 people in the UK receiving carer’s allowance, with millions of carer’s allowance payments each year.

“There is an online service which around 80 per cent of claimants use, expressing satisfaction rates with the service of around 90 per cent.”

As well as carer’s allowance, carers may also be eligible for the following financial support:

• Universal Credit – if you are out of work or on a low income. People who spend more than 35 hours per week caring for someone who is getting a benefit because of their disability get extra money included in their Universal Credit.
• Carers’ Credit – if you are under State Pension age and you are caring for someone for at least 20 hours a week.
• Pension Credit – If you and your partner have reached the qualifying age for Pension Credit. If one of you is under pension age and one is over it, use the Turn2us calculator to check what benefits you might be able to claim.

Turn2us recommends that carers who are worried about financial support visit its website at www.turn2us.org.uk or call its helpline on 0808 802 2000 to check what benefits or charitable grants they may be eligible for.

If you think you are a carer, the GM Health and Social Care Partnership recommends you contact your local council’s social services team to ask for a carer’s assessment.

Alice Richardson, Local Democracy Reporter