The cost of caring
Our research shows that UK families raising disabled, or seriously ill, children and young people are now facing serious financial jeopardy and struggling to survive, due to the scale of the cost-of-living crisis.
Report reveals families raising disabled children are struggling to survive
“The cost of caring” report polled 4,264 families with a disabled child or seriously ill child. We found that nine in 10 families are struggling, or falling behind on their regular household bills. Many families are forced to forego living essentials such as food, heating, basic furniture like beds, washers and fridges, to try to make ends meet.
Over half of parents and carers (54%) reported skipping or cutting the size of their meals because there wasn’t enough money for food. More than one in ten (13%) said they’d had to cut back on essential items for their disabled children. Four in five (83%) are in debt, with rising debt levels for two in five families (43%) polled. Over 40% reported they can’t afford to keep accommodation warm, a 13% increase since December 2021. One in five families reported taking on more credit to keep up with existing credit commitments.
The new report highlights the unsustainable strain on families raising disabled and seriously ill children and young people. Families try to cover sky-high costs on top of severely reduced incomes due to intense caring responsibilities, three times higher costs to look after a disabled child and critical levels of debt.
Cheryl Ward, Family Fund Chief Executive commented on the report:
“The outlook for families raising a disabled, or seriously ill, child is now graver than ever. They are unsure how to cope with ever-rising caring costs with winter approaching. They are having to borrow more credit to pay for intense levels of debt. And they are feeling more isolated than ever, with worsening mental and physical health.
“These are families on the lowest of incomes, due to caring for their children round-the-clock and having far-reduced available support services, post-pandemic.
“When caring costs have spiralled so far out of control that families are having to cut back on the very essentials their disabled child needs, something has to change.”
“Along with our sector partners, we are urging Government to ensure that family benefits are increased in line with inflation, rather than reducing, at a time when the escalating costs of caring are already jeopardising families’ lives.”
Open and read the full cost of caring report (3MB pdf)
Take a look at families’ cost-of-living storiesHow we are supporting families
We provide essential grants and services for families. This includes white goods, clothing, bedding, play and sensory equipment, much-needed family breaks and information and support on finances.
Last year, we delivered over 170,919 grants and services, worth over £37 million, to families on low incomes across the UK.
The cost of caring report features research from our last four quarterly family polls, from September 2021 to June 2022.