Major changes to the benefits which can be claimed by carers have been announced by the Government.
Chancellor Rachel Reeves outlined “the largest increase since Carer’s Allowance was introduced in 1976” as she delivered the Autumn Budget on Wednesday, which she said would enable carers to earn more than £10,000 a year while receiving the benefit.
Here we explain what the various Government schemes for carers involve, and how much they pay.
Carer’s allowance
Delivering her first Budget, the Chancellor upped the weekly earnings limit for carer’s allowance – the main benefit provided by the Government to anyone who helps look after a relative, loved one or friend – to the equivalent of 16 hours at the national living wage.
It represents “the largest increase since Carer’s Allowance was introduced in 1976,” Ms Reeves said, adding: “That means a carer can now earn over £10,000 a year while receiving carer’s allowance, allowing them to increase their hours where they want to and keep more of their money.”
The national minimum wage is also set to rise by 6.7 per cent to £12.21 an hour, she confirmed.
You may be able to claim carer’s allowance if you look after someone in receipt of some form of disability benefit. This could be the daily living component of personal independence payment (PIP), attendance allowance, the middle or highest care rate of disability living allowance, or one of several other benefits.
Check the full list online.
Only one person can claim carer’s allowance for taking care of a particular person, so you cannot share the benefit with someone else.
Currently, carer’s allowance – claimed by more than a million people in the UK – is worth £81.90 a week, and is awarded if you care for someone at least 35 hours a week.
As for your own circumstances, you need to be over 16, live in England, Scotland or Wales, and not be in full-time education. Your weekly earnings also cannot be over £151 after tax, national insurance, and expenses such as the travel and clothing you need for work are taken out.
Carer’s premium
People in receipt of carer’s allowance may also be able to increase the amount they are paid from certain other benefits, known as the carer premium.
Sometimes also referred to as the carer’s addition, this can be added to pension credit, income-related jobseeker’s allowance, employment and support allowance (ESA), income support, or housing benefit.
You may also be able to get the premium included in a council tax reduction – contact your local council to check this.
The premium is worth £45.60 per week.
Universal credit
You can claim both universal credit and carer’s allowance, but you cannot have the full amount of both, because the allowance counts as income.
When you qualify for carer’s allowance, your universal credit will be reduced by the amount you receive from your allowance payment.
However, it is possible to get a top-up on your universal credit if you care for someone who gets a disability-related benefit, regardless of whether you receive carer’s allowance or not.
Known as the Carer Element, this can be worth £198.31 a month.
To claim this if you’re not receiving it already, you can go to your universal credit online account and update your details.
Carer’s credit
If you don’t qualify for carer’s allowance, you might still be able to claim carer’s credit. This scheme makes people of working age aren’t missing out on national insurance contributions if they take time out of work to care for someone, ensuring that your state pension eligibility isn’t affected down the line.
The number of hours you need to be looking after someone is slightly lower than carer’s allowance, at 20 hours a week. The person in your care still needs to be receiving one of the qualifying benefits, or you might still be able to claim the credit by having a health or social care professional confirm that they need the care you provide.
There is no income requirement for carer’s credit, and you can even take breaks of up to 12 weeks from caring while still benefiting from the credit. This helps cover periods of time where you or the person you look after needs to go into hospital, or if you want to take a holiday.