Age needs one voice. Now it has:
Age UK is the new force combining Age Concern England and
Help the Aged in England.
The new force combining &
If you look after your partner, or a relative or friend who needs help because they are ill or disabled, then you are a carer. The main welfare benefit for carers is called Carer's Allowance.
To qualify for Carer's Allowance, you must:
If you are under pension age, you will also get National Insurance credits each week towards your pension.
Carer's Allowance may not be paid if you are receiving a State Pension or certain other benefits. However‚ it may be a good idea to apply anyway because you could get extra Pension Credit and/or Council Tax/Housing Benefit.
Carer’s Allowance can sometimes continue for short periods if you or the person you care for goes into hospital, or if you have a break from caring.
Call the Benefit Enquiry Line on 0800 88 22 00 to request a claim form. You can also request a form from the Carer's Allowance Unit by calling 0845 608 4321 or make a claim online at www.dwp.gov.uk/carersallowance
Download the guide Advice for carers (PDF 2.82 MB)
Download the Carer's Allowance factsheet (PDF 152 KB)
Download the guide More money in your pocket: A guide to claiming benefits for people over pension age (PDF 2.20 MB)
Download the guide Claiming benefits: A guide for people of working age (PDF 1.83 MB)
“The extra money has made a big difference to our lives. Douglas now gets the proper care he needs with me at home”
Douglas, 79, spent 40-odd years driving a petrol tanker around the country before he retired at 65. While he loved the job‚ it took its toll on his knees and he is now partially housebound.
“My wife Kathryn and I had no idea that we could claim benefits until we popped in to see Tracy at Age Concern*‚” said Douglas.
Kathryn said‚ “Douglas was finding it hard to manage on his own at home. His knees made him unstable so he was at risk of injury. I was working part time and was always worried about him when I left the house.
“Tracy changed our lives. She helped Douglas claim Attendance Allowance and then she helped me claim Carer’s Allowance so I could leave my job as a cleaner and stay home full time to look after him.
“The extra money has made a big difference to our lives. Douglas now gets the proper care he needs with me at home and he can pay for physio on his knees. I find we worry less about our gas bills. I am healthier too since leaving my job because the cleaning was taking its toll on me physically.
“And to think‚ all we did was answer some questions and sign the forms. Tracy did the rest! She was wonderful.”
* Age UK was formed by the merger of Age Concern and Help the Aged
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This guide looks at both the practical and emotional sides of caring, and where to go for help.
A factsheet about the benefit paid to carers.
Your guide to benefits if you are sick, disabled, unemployed, looking after children or caring for someone who is ill or disabled.
If you’re aged 60 or over, you could be entitled to benefits you haven’t been able to claim before.
Downloads
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Most downloads on this website are PDFs. We use this format to ensure that the document looks the same on everyone’s computer (website pages, by contrast, appear differently depending on how people have set their computer up).
Computers use a program called Adobe Acrobat Reader to download PDFs. If you try clicking on a link to download a PDF and it doesn’t work, you will need to install Adobe Acrobat Reader onto your computer.
The process is quite straightforward and is free.
PDFs cannot be changed. If you need to be able to type into a downloaded document (for example, if we are offering a letter template that you need to put your name on) we will provide it as a Microsoft Word document rather than a PDF. You can then download it, type into it and save it to your computer.
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