East charity supporting carers says new law will make a "huge difference"
Under the Carer's Leave Act, those who need to look after a friend or family member can take up to a week of unpaid leave every year
A charity that supports carers across the East is telling us that a new law to support carers in work will make a "huge difference".
Under the Carer's Leave Act, which comes into force tomorrow, those who need to look after a friend or family member can take up to a week of unpaid leave every year.
"A huge difference"
Belinda Jones is from 'Caring Together':
"This is going to make a huge difference to carers who are juggling different responsibilities. We know that many have to reduce their hours or give up work entirely to care for somebody.
"By making it easier for people to support their loved ones, employers are likely to benefit from less staff turn-over and reduction in recruitment and training costs by retaining employees who would previously struggle to balance their caring responsibilities and working life."
"They very often park their own personal needs"
She says there are still improvements to be made though: "We know that carers very often don't self identify as a carers, they just see themselves as somebody that's supporting a friend or family member.
"Raising awareness about unpaid carers continues to be vital, so carers are identified and supported from the earliest possible time.
"Young carers, young adult carers and parent carers can really struggle with their mental and physical health. They very often park their own personal needs and come secondary to those they care for. We know they often present themselves later to medical professionals."
The Carer's Leave Act in more detail:
It means workers are entitled to such leave to give or arrange care for a dependant - not necessarily a family member - who has a physical or mental illness or injury meaning they will need care for more than three months, who has a disability, or who needs care due to old age.
Wendy Chamberlain, who introduced the Bill to Parliament in 2022, described the new entitlement as "vital progress in improving carers' employment rights" and something which will give people more flexibility to balance work and caring.
The Liberal Democrat MP said: "Caring or being cared for is something that almost everyone will experience at some point in their life.
"The work unpaid carers do is so vital yet is it extremely underappreciated. This hard work should be better recognised which is a key reason why I led the Carer's Leave Act through Parliament."
"Means every employer in the country must recognise carers in the workplace"
National Charity, Carers UK, say its past research had found that around 600 people a day give up work so they can care due to a lack of flexibility and support.
Helen Walker, chief executive of Carers UK, said: "The Carer's Leave Act coming into force is a huge step forward for millions of carers, which recognises the vital importance of their caring role and empowers them to ask for support in the workplace - in the form of unpaid Carer's Leave - knowing that they have a legal entitlement to this."
She said "too many skilled and valued workers are leaving employment due to the stress of balancing work and unpaid care" but now the Act means every employer in the country "must recognise carers in the workplace."
She said employees can be "confident speaking about their caring role - kickstarting a crucial conversation about the support they need to stay in work, which matters not just for carers, but for employers and the economy, too."
Further research:
Polling, commissioned by GoodOaks Homecare, has suggested only around one in 10 unpaid carers surveyed across England feel they have a "good understanding" of the Act.
Of 1,000 unpaid carers, just over half (56%) said they believed the current Government was supporting unpaid carers "ineffectively", while 65% of those polled said that they would be "likely" to switch their vote to a party which would bring in more measures to support their needs.
The February polling, for the company's You Are Not Alone campaign, found that 62% of unpaid carers described themselves as having felt "stressed", while unpaid carers were more than twice as likely as members of the general public to have said they felt lonely.
"A step forward"
Campaign founder Ben Ashton said the findings "shed light on the immense challenges faced by those dedicating their lives to care for others, often at great personal cost" and should "serve as a wake-up call to our nation's leaders".
He added: "The Carer's Leave Act is a step forward, but our research underscores a significant gap in awareness and support."