(Minister of State for
Care):I am today publishing a ‘Carers Action Plan
2018-2020 – Supporting carers today’ in the week leading up to
Carers Week (11-17 June).
The cross-government Carers Action Plan is an essential step
towards realising the Government’s commitment to value, recognise
and support carers to provide care in a way that supports their
own health and wellbeing, employment and other life chances.
The plan sets out a two-year programme of targeted work to
support unpaid carers. It puts a focus on practical actions to
support carers and gives visibility to the work already underway
or planned within government.
In 2016, the Government ran a call for evidence to seek the views
and experiences of unpaid carers. A summary of the 6,800
responses received will be published alongside the plan. Their
contributions have informed its development and content, helping
us to focus actions around the following five themes:
- Services and systems that work for carers
- Employment and financial wellbeing
- Supporting young carers
- Recognising and supporting carers in the wider community and
society
- Building evidence and research to improve outcomes for carers
In this way, we will seek to build accessible carer friendly
communities and public services, promote innovative local
projects and support carers to stay in work.
The government recognises there is more to do and that is why the
needs of carers will be central to the forthcoming Green Paper on
care and support, as set out in the Secretary of Health’s speech
in March.
The plan has been developed in close collaboration with Ministers
and officials in other government departments including the
Government Equalities Office, Department for Education,
Department for Work and Pensions, Business, Energy and Industrial
Strategy and Department for Digital, Culture, Media &
Sport.
The Government wants to ensure that caring is a choice or
responsibility that is always recognised and valued. The
publication of this Carers Action Plan today is an important part
of that commitment.
The Carers Action Plan 2018-2020 [for England] – Supporting
Carers Today is attached to this statement and is available on
Gov.uk.
