'Harrowing' distress now the norm for unpaid carers in Wales

"HARROWING" levels of distress have become the norm for unpaid carers in Wales, a committee has heard, with charities warning of a support system "set up to fail".

- By CHRIS HAINES ICNN Senedd Reporter

Reports suggest a 31% poverty rate among carers, far higher than the winder population

Kate Cubbage, director of Carers Trust Wales, told the Senedd's health scrutiny committee: "There are too many carers who are reaching crisis point without any support."

Ms Cubbage explained that most councils are supporting fewer than 500 carers, warning: "There are really, really high levels of unmet need within our communities."

She told Senedd members that staff are receiving trauma training to support their mental health due to the levels of distress they are seeing among carers.

Ms Cubbage pointed to a University of Birmingham study which found an increased suicide risk among unpaid carers akin to that of veterans who have seen active service.

"One in eight carers has made a plan to end their own life," she said, calling for carers to be specifically considered in the Welsh Government's suicide prevention strategy.

"One in 10 has made an attempt... at a time when the average local authority has support plans for less than 0.5% of the caring population."

Warning of deepening poverty in Wales, the witness expressed concerns about a 31% poverty rate among carers "far higher" than the 22% in the wider population.