Carers Network
The University Carers Network is a supportive and engaged group of staff with a diverse range of caring responsibilities or keen interest in care issues. It also provides a valuable platform for discussion of the many issues affecting the balance between work and home.
Email CarersNetwork@napier.ac.uk to get involved.
Some facts
and figures on caring from Carers Scotland
- There are 759,000 adults carers in Scotland - 17%
of the adult population
- There are an estimated 29,000 young carers in
Scotland - 4% of the under 16 population
- Every year over 160,000 take on a caring role
- 171,000 people care for 35 hours a week or more
- 132,000 people care for 50 hours a week or more
- 59% of carers are female, 41% male
- 3 in 5 of us will become carers at some point in
our lives.
- Over 250,000 people juggle caring with holding down
a job
- The main carers' benefit is worth just £62.10 for a
minimum of 35 hours
- A third of carers are struggling to pay utility
bills, 47% have been in debt and half are struggling to make ends meet, cutting
back on food and heating as a result
- 8 in 10 carers say their health is worse because of
caring
- 56% of carers are employed or self employed
- By 2037 the number of carers in Scotland will have
increased to around 1 million
- Carers save the Scottish economy £10.3 billion -
close to the cost of providing NHS services in Scotland
The impact of Covid-19 on caring
Since the beginning of the pandemic,
there has been an increase of 400,000 carers in Scotland, bringing the total to
an estimated 1.1 million, or one in five of the population, according to Carers
Scotland.
University policies and support
Past Events and Presentations
Additional information and support
If you live in another local authority in Scotland, you can check the support available to you on Care Information Scotland.
Respite and breaks
Carer Positive (Engaged) Accreditation
The
University have Carer Positive (Engaged) Accreditation.
The aim
of Carer Positive is to:
- Raise
awareness of the growing numbers of people who juggle work and caring
responsibilities
- Encourage
employers to understand the business case for supporting carers in the
workplace
- Encourage
and provide recognition to those employers who currently have, or who develop
policies and practices which support carers in their workforce
Sue McLintock from Carers Scotland (left) presents the Carers Positive Award to Edinburgh Napier’s Dr Gary Hutchison, Carers Network Sponsor, and Susan Burnett, previous Network lead. The award is presented to employers in Scotland who have a working environment where carers are valued and supported.