To think very few carers will benefit from the “ increase “ in carers

[Ionlytrymybest]

reading the budget and I can see some carers may benefit
those who can work along side up to the maximum amount allowed of earnings or those with partners who work full time with a wage good enough to not be on UC.

but many full time carers are on universal credit, so the increase in these cases is surely pointless they won’t see an increase in their monthly money at all as it is deducted 1.00 for 1.00 from Universal credit ?

so unless they change the 1.00 for 1.00 deductions it’s not really that big of a change ?

Your situation and the many people in similar circumstances is a disgrace. Of all the unfairness within our welfare systems, the treatment of carers is the worst and least justifiable. Carers could recieve the equivalent of NNW and the country would still be quids in by comparison. Yet your emotional connection to the people you care for is shamelessly exploited by a society that expects you to work for love and subsistence alone. It makes me so angry.

Carers are completely undervalued. As someone mentioned carers allowance is a bargain to the state. If children and adults had to be cared for by professionals rather than loving and devoted relatives the bill would be huge. This measure is a shift from benefits to reduce the benefits bill. Well ok, but it doesn't address the party amount of carers allowance.

I’m not sure now to be honest

Every penny of your CA is taken off your UC though, isn't it? So it's accurate to say that you are no better off for claiming CA.

Your income wouldn't change if you didn't claim CA. That's what people are getting at. The CA doesn't benefit you in any way at all. It doesn't make you better off!

My CA isn't taken off the UC, it's part of it and claiming CA means I'm exempt from the benefit cap. I'm a full time carer with no other employment and I think my hourly rate is around £2 at the moment. The increase to me is huge unless they take something away from somewhere else. I haven't seen what is happening with UC or the housing element so I'm not counting my chickens.
Carers are so undervalued.

Do these people get PIP because for me out of peoples PIP? I pay towards care which is not people like you it’s an actual business but I get so much paid and I have to put so much towards it so if you are looking after people that are on PIP why are they not giving you a little bit of cash on the side? Because I have to put towards my carers? I would if you were looking after me

I just want to make this point though as somebody that has carers the council says I have to put £70 a week towards my care which is fine because that is what my PIP is for so why are you caring for people who are not helping towards some extra bits for you because why are they getting disability because that money should be used towards being disabled?

And once you're a pensioner your carer's allowance stops even though your caring duties will continue until either you die of exhaustion or the subject of your ministrations predeceases you.

Because my daughters a child 🤣

she gets dla yes but it all goes on the extras needed.

Carers allowance is taken off UC 1.00 for 1.00

there is an carers element on UC that you can get but it’s less than carers allowance.

I don't think its right that you have to. PIP is for extra costs associated with your disability. If you have to pay all of that to carers then what about other costs many disabled people have such as extra heat or laundry, specific clothing needs, particular diet? Not to mention the unfairness that someone with a disability severe enough to need to pay carers is worse off than someone able to manage without. Carers are saving the public purse huge amounts of money and should be paid from the public purse. I don't think the money should be clawed from people with disabilities who are often already economically disadvantaged.

Okay so I'm a bit confused, if anyone can clear this up....does anyone actually get carers allowance who needs it? My point is that if you're only working 16 hours, well you're going to be on UC then aren't you, to pay your rent and bills etc, as a part time wage isn't going to cover that by itself? Then that carers will be taken off you £1 for £1 anyway.

The only situation I can think of is if one person in couple of a disabled child works and the other partner works part time alongside caring and so neither claim UC, they can get some carers allowance to top up their income.

But that essentially locks single people out of receiving carers allowance, because no single person can survive on 16 hours a week alone, without needing a UC top up? Unless the person you're caring for is an adult and claims the UC for the rent etc on top of their PIP and the carer lives with them.

So basically single parents are excluded from carers allowance, is this right?

You also don't get this carers element if you're on LCWAW yourself for some reason. Even though having an illness yourself isn't related to the care you put in for your disabled family member.

Sorry, mine is the carer's element of UC so perhaps that is different? Nothing is deducted at all from my UC.

Ok I can answer this

I think

I have been in both situations.

i was a stay at home carer for DD while partner worked full times he earned too much for us to be entitled to old style benefits.
I claimed carers on a weekly rate but was slightly less than it is now and I wasn’t taxed because I was under my personal threshold on just carers alone.

I was then a single parent and care working part time along side under the threshold and was still able to claim carers and benefits but my carers allowance was deducted.

I was then a single mum full time carer on universal credit when it switched over to UC and carers was deducted 1 for 1 but there was a carers element on UC however much less than carers allowance.

the only time I got full carers allowance without any deductions was when I had a partner working full time and not on other benefits.

Yes so there’s a carers element on UC but it’s less than carers allowance and then is apart of the UC that gets deducted if you earn more than 400.00 a month.

I can't work FT due to caring for my child (who gets DLA), so I work PT. I can't apply for carer's allowance as I earn £800 a month. I'm shattered. If I kicked my husband out I would actually be better off. That's when you know the system is broken!

I don’t necessarily believe this though to be honest

dla I not income based.

with your husbands wages and hours you would defo be in more money than a single mum carer with no husband solely on universal credits.

Because there carers gets deducted anyway.

on UC I for 1200 a month in total including care.

if your husband was only earning 400.00 a month then then you would still be entitlement to UC x

So again single parents are penalised for being single....we need to get gingerbread onto this, maybe?

This is my situation too.

I have a disabled DS who is 14 years old and still in nappies. Needs support day and night, and can't manage any activities on his own, including washing. His twin sister is also disabled, and has reasonably high care needs too.

Both children are now home educated as there simply isn't spaces in the local SEN schools. So they are with me 24/7.

My DM, who lives in an annexe attached to my house, has cerebral palsy. I am her carer.

DP collapsed at work two years ago and will never be able to work again. He doesn't need "care" most of the time but his condition means I can't leave him alone in the house, and he can't go out without me. He can no longer drive or do the majority of chores around the house.

I work as close to F/T hours as I can manage. But that means working through the night. I am often up working until 5 or 6am, in between going up and down to both my DC. My DD normally needs me intermittently up until around 3-4am.

I cannot tell you how utterly, utterly exhausted I am. Or how broke we are. But if I don't carry on, everything will come crashing down and we'll have no home. So I struggle on actively caring for three people, and heavily supporting a fourth. And working in my self-employment.

I get UC. If I claim Carer's Allowance, it comes straight off my UC, pound for pound so I'm no better off. So I didn't bother claiming Carer's Allowance because there's no benefit.

Being "allowed" to work more for Carer's Allowance makes zero difference to me and the many, many carers in a similar position.

Carer's Allowance is taken off your UC so whether my earnings are £145 or £190, I won't see a single penny of my Carer's Allowance anyway.

It’s one of those things I suppose that will help some people and not others.

Those who work and weren’t previously eligible may be eligible now (I think the article I saw reckoned this would mean 60,000 more people will now be eligible) so it’s good for those people, and for those who work and are able to can now earn extra each week without losing carer’s, so it’s a benefit for those people.

It’s the theme of the whole budget really, to get anybody who can work, to work, so this is a bit of an incentive.

But of course there are people who can’t work who don’t benefit from this change.

Well of course no matter how you look at it because
even if my DC dad was still alive and living with us.
he could earn up to 400 a month without our UC being deducted and then 55p per 1.00 after that.
of He earned to much for UC i would be able to claim full carers allowance without it being deducted from anywhere else.

Then again I should add even in a couple of the husbands wage is not enough and they rely on Universal credit top up the mum’s carers allowance would still be deducted 1.00 for 1.00.

Exactly this