The Work and Pensions Committee has called on the Government to remove the benefit calculation that sees Carer’s Allowance, £64.60 per week, withdrawn in full as soon as carers earn more than £120 a week. This rule means that working additional hours can leave carers worse off, as many carers rely on the financial support of Carer’s Allowance.  There are about 670,000 carers of people living with dementia in the UK, who save the state £11bn a year and yet they face financial struggles and work that isn't flexible or considerate to the needs of caring.  

Rt Hon Frank Field MP, Chair of the Work and Pension Committee, said: “Carers are heroic and undervalued. They are a great untapped resource for our high employment, low productivity economy - and a sorely unrecognised one. They contribute hundreds of billions of pounds in unpaid work to our economy which is not counted on any Treasury balance sheet. Ensuring work pays and that employers adapt to accommodate caring is not just good for the carers: it is necessary for the whole economy. Government should lead on both practice and policy.

Find out more here, and sign the petition here.