Carer's Allowance
The question
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what assessment her Department has made of the adequacy of Carer’s Allowance for unpaid carers.
Answered by Sir Stephen Timms
Many people will care for friends or family members at some point in their life, and it is right that we recognise the vitally important role of carers. Carer’s Allowance (CA) provides a measure of financial support and recognition for unpaid carers who are unable to work full time due to their caring responsibilities. The DWP provides over £4 billion of financial support per year through CA to unpaid carers.
Between 2025/26 and 2029/30 real terms expenditure on CA is forecast to rise by over 6% - around £285 million. By 2029/30, the Government is forecast to spend over £4.7 billion a year on CA. Further CA caseload and expenditure information can be found here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/benefit-expenditure-and-caseload-tables-2025
In addition to CA, carers on low incomes can claim income-related benefits, such as Universal Credit and Pension Credit. These benefits can be paid to carers at a higher rate than those without caring responsibilities through the carer element and the additional amount for carers respectively. Currently, the Universal Credit carer element is £201.68 per monthly assessment period. The additional amount for carers in Pension Credit is £46.40 a week. These are worth £2400 a year in additional benefit.
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