MP joins Lynda Bellingham on caring campaign
07:00 Saturday 18 May 2013
Little Hadgham MP joins Lynda Bellingham on caring campaign
Written bySINEAD HOLLAND
LITTLE Hadham’s MP Oliver Heald has joined forces with Oxo mum actress Lynda Bellingham to celebrate the launch of Carers Week.
In a photocall at Westminster, The Conservative pledged his support to carers across his North East Herts constituency as part of the awareness campaign which will run between June 10 and 15, focussing on the country’s 6.5m unsung heroes.
Mr Heald said: “Every day across North East Herts, one in eight people will care for a loved one in some form. This hidden group of people give up their time, sometimes their jobs and often make life changing sacrifices to care for someone.
“Carers save this country an incredible £119 billion1 every year. That’s why I believe as a society we must be Prepared to Care for our carers. We are very fortunate to have Crossroads Care locally, which is an excellent support group.”
Actress and former carer, Ms Bellingham, said: “My sister and I cared for our mother when she had Alzheimer’s and so I know first-hand the impact that caring can have on someone’s life. That’s why I’m supporting Carers Week because I believe it’s vital that help is made available, especially when you consider that every day 6,000 new people will take on a caring role for a loved one. Carers in this country do a fantastic job and we must come together to support them.”
“It’s fantastic to see MPs pledge their support for Carers Week and carers in the UK. Events like this ensure that carers stay at the top of the political agenda and it’s also an opportunity to remind MPs and decision makers of the overwhelming contribution that carers make.”
The campaign comes as new Census data reveals 17,497 children in the East of England are caring for their parents, siblings and family members. This includes 2,219 children aged nine or younger.
There are 166,363 young carers across England, this is up by a fifth from the last Census in 2001. Nearly 15,000 children up to the age of 17 are providing more than 50 hours of care every week across the country.
At the same time around 141,000 (141,314) older people in the East of England are devoting their retirement to caring for ill partners or their own ageing parents – an increase of 40,464 in the past 10 years.
According to figures published by the Office for National Statistics, this army of ageing carers in the region has rocketed by 40 per cent in the last decade. The number of older carers has risen more rapidly than the total number of carers – which has increased by 11 per cent to 6.5 million in the UK, and by 15 per cent to almost 600,000 (595,435) in the East of England.
Other Census figures show that: women are bearing the brunt of caring as 58 per cent (343,270) of carers in the East are women and 42 per cent (252,165) are men. In all 316,777 carers in the region are juggling work with caring for older or disabled loved ones.
Heléna Herklots, chief executive of Carers UK, said: “Our ageing population has created a new generation of unpaid carers – many are juggling work with caring for older or disabled loved ones, and a rising number of older people are devoting their retirements to caring for their families.”
“Our care services are already struggling support the millions who care for loved ones. Government must act, not just to preserve dignity and independence of older people who need support, but also prevent their partners and children from being pushed to breaking point caring for them.”
