A campaign pushing for a significant increase in the Carer's Allowance, potentially by £319, is gaining momentum. Advocates are calling for the benefit to be aligned with the national living wage, resulting in a substantial weekly payment increase.
The Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) is poised to announce a significant increase in one of its key benefits, potentially amounting to £319. A campaign is mounting pressure on the new Labour government and the DWP to raise the Carer's Allowance to match the national living wage . This would see weekly payments soar to £400.40, or £1,601.60 every four weeks. Currently, the rate stands at £81.90 per week (£327.60 every four weeks) for individuals dedicating 35 hours a week to unpaid care.
A petition demanding this increase highlights the disparity between the current allowance and the national minimum wage. It states, 'Carer's Allowance is currently £327.60 every four weeks for people who care for someone for at least 35 hours per week. Around £2.34 per hour.' It further emphasizes that 'The National Minimum Wage for people over 21 is £11.44 per hour which would be around £400 per week. Carers Allowance is a taxable benefit and is counted as income for other benefits like Universal Credit.'The petition underscores the vital contribution carers make to society, citing a recent study reported by Birmingham Live: 'A recent study has shown that unpaid carers in England and Wales contribute £445 million to the economy every day – that's £162 billion per year. The study says that the value of unpaid care is equivalent to a second NHS in England and Wales,' reports Birmingham Live. 'Despite this, carers receive Carer's Allowance which amounts to £4,258.80 per year. Because it is taxable, it is effectively treated as a wage when claiming other benefits, which many carers have to do to survive.' Approximately 1.4 million people in the UK currently claim the weekly £81.90 Carer's Allowance, requiring a minimum of 35 hours of care per week to qualify. The allowance permits recipients to earn additional income but imposes a limit of £151 per week after deductions such as tax, National Insurance contributions, pension payments, and approved expenses. If this limit is exceeded, even by a single pound, the entire benefit is forfeited, leaving carers vulnerable to prosecution for benefit fraud
Carer's Allowance National Living Wage Benefits Social Welfare Unpaid Carers
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