Caring for carers: is a national strategy enough?
Organisations representing the people who provide vital support want more than just a colourful strategy full of infographics - they want actions as well as words.
Our research on the cost of caring
Unpaid carers struggle more financially in retirement and women are more likely to draw the short straw.
What are the factors contributing to this and what can be done? NSA members can learn more about the cost and contribution of carers by visiting National Seniors Australia research.
Carers Australia (CA) and other carer organisations are calling for action to back up the Federal Government’s strategy and address the key issues facing the army of carers around the nation.
The most pressing is the cost-of-living crisis, which CA says is having an “acute impact on carers, with current support barely covering day-today living expenses, prescriptions and doctor visits, and higher housing, transportation and other carer costs”.
The 2024 National Survey of Carers found nearly 60% of carers experience financial stress – not surprising, given they lose on average $567,000 in earnings and superannuation over their lifetimes.
The National Carer Strategy sets out an agenda to support Australia’s unpaid carers to improve and maintain their wellbeing, providing the tools, skills and knowledge they need, and to better balance their lives with their caring role.
The National Carers Network (NCN) welcomes the strategy’s promised additional 10,000 funded counselling services and the commitments to extend the successful Carer-Inclusive Workplace Initiative and the Young Carer Bursary (YCB).
However, the network says, there is an urgent need for YCB top-up funding so young carers are not denied this lifeline in 2025.
“Ahead of the 2025 Federal election, Carers Australia asks every politician to commit to tangible actions that will make a meaningful difference for carers,” Annabel Reid, CA’s chief executive officer, said.
“Our ‘election asks’ align with and build on the National Carer Strategy. We are committed to working with the Albanese Government and all political parties to enhance the financial security, health, wellbeing, and services and support for carers.”
Why carers are important
Unpaid carers make significant personal sacrifices by forgoing careers, social lives, education, and financial security to care for others. This often affects the carer’s mental and physical wellbeing.
The skills carers develop are transferrable to the workforce, underscoring the economic value of their contribution.
Carers alleviate pressure on formal health and aged care systems while enhancing the quality of life and independence of those they care for.
Without their contributions of at least $78 billion annually, our economy would collapse.
The Department of Social Services says it is a “framework for co-designing, developing, and delivering a suite of actions to holistically improve the lives of carers” and will guide how support for carers can be improved and help them better balance their caring role with all aspects of their lives.
The department says it is a positive step towards improving awareness of carers, including their roles, the impacts of supporting others, and the availability of carer supports and services.
