Letter: Benefit system for carers needs shake-up
Thursday 19th August 2010, 6:00AM BST.
Letter: I have seen letters recently about older people and unemployment, and I am shortly to become one of these.
My case is that my mother passed away in July. I was her constant carer for seven years, despite being 60 in October and will be collecting my pension next year. I have to sign on for Jobseekers’ Allowance and will lose all my benefits and have no income, despite having a brother with learning difficulties who will need support. I cannot claim carers’ allowance for him because they will take money off him so I will be his unpaid carer.
I’m wondering how many carers find themselves in this situation – you lose the person you loved and cared for and this is your future.
This highlights the crazy system the DSS is working under and it needs a good shake-up.
M A Hunstone
Shrewsbury
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I read a report some time ago which estimated that care provided by family members saved the government and taxpayers *millions* of pounds a year. And yet the allowance for carers is something like £50-55 a week – less than Jobseekers Allowance etc and yet a carers life I would imagine involves far more work and more stressful than we could imagine.
If this Government don’t do much else, they at least ought to protect and enhance the lot of carers as much as they are able. Most of the time, we only see how illness, old age or infirmity affects *other* people.
Who knows – one day a few of us may need this care (or even found ourselves having to provide this sort of care ourselves).
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Jeepers what you say is true. My feelings are that a carer needs support for a year after the person they have cared for has passed away.
Many carers have cared for years and their health is poor because of this. Without support in their caring role, many suffer bad backs, and emotional stress.
We went to Westminster a few years back and told them about this happening over and over again, but still nothing has changed, let’s hope this new government will take this on board and change things for the better.
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Thats really sad to hear.
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fat chance of that seems like the old and vulnerable are to be hopelessly abandoned
so much for 1939–so much for bothering to vote whoever is in charge it will allways be the same i will never vote again
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