Try GOLD - Free
Sayce review Key takeaways
The Guardian
|November 26, 2025
In interviews with the Guardian over the past 18 months, unpaid carers described how they were made by the DWP to feel like criminals, shamed into accepting responsibility for an error that - as made clear by the Sayce report - was not their fault.
-
Devastating impact on carers
Nearly three-quarters of the 1 million people who claim £83.30 a week in carer's allowance are women. They are disproportionately in poverty and 40% are struggling with their own mental or physical health while caring for their loved one.
One carer told the inquiry team they “lost weight, I couldn't sleep” after being told to pay back money to the DWP; another didn't tell their own family. “I felt so shocked. I felt shame,” they said. Another felt like the government was kicking them when they were already down.
This had a direct effect on the health of the carer and those they looked after. Some felt so pushed to breaking point that the local authority had to take over the care, at a cost to the state.
The “benefits trap” ruthlessly designed to hit internal targets
This story is from the November 26, 2025 edition of The Guardian.
Subscribe to Magzter GOLD to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 10,000+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber? Sign In
MORE STORIES FROM The Guardian
The Guardian
'A serious list of winners' Anderson's epic captures the current febrile mood
Now that the political scene in the contemporary United States looks like an unending string of military PR coups for the Trumpian right at home and abroad, it's appropriate that Paul Thomas Anderson's spectacular, mysterious counterculture epic One Battle After Another - with Leonardo DiCaprio as a clueless, dishevelled ex-revolutionary should consolidate its current position as one of the leading movies of this awards season: winning four Golden Globes including best musical or comedy and best director for Anderson whose fluency, productivity and pure technique and ambition are arguably making him America's pre-eminent film-maker. The excellent Teyana Taylor got best supporting actress.
2 mins
January 13, 2026
The Guardian
Mission impossible? United to offer Carrick transfer funds as new interim manager
Manchester United expect to confirm Michael Carrick as the interim manager today, with finance to be at the 44-year-old's disposal to strengthen the squad should a target for the long term become available.
1 mins
January 13, 2026
The Guardian
'People are desperate' Clinicians speak of an overwhelmed system
When Craig* started as a clinician for a private ADHD clinic in the spring of 2023, he was pleased by how thorough the training was and how seriously the organisation seemed to take clinical standards.
3 mins
January 13, 2026
The Guardian
Is this Tory party 2.0? Welcoming defectors carries risks for Farage
In the death throes of Boris J ohnson's government in the summer of 2022, Nadhim Zahawi was appointed chancellor by an increasingly desperate prime minister determined to cling on to power.
3 mins
January 13, 2026
The Guardian
Diplomacy Tehran is willing to talk 'on basis of respect'
Iran's foreign minister, Abbas Araghchi, has said Iran is willing to negotiate with the US about its nuclear programme on the basis of respect but did not comment on claims by Donald Trump that Iran was arranging a meeting with the US.
2 mins
January 13, 2026
The Guardian
'Voices being heard' Myanmar's military on trial in Rohingya genocide case at ICJ
Finally, I feel like our voices are being heard, and like something is going to happen that is positive for the community,\" says Monaira *.
3 mins
January 13, 2026
The Guardian
Alonso leaves Real Madrid and is replaced by Arbeloa
Xabi Alonso has left his job as coach of Real Madrid, only seven months after arriving for his first day at the club's Valdebebas training ground.
3 mins
January 13, 2026
The Guardian
Some Iranians can beat the blackout but risks are high
For most of Iran, the internet was shut off on Thursday afternoon, the most severe blackout the country has seen in years of internet shutdowns, coming after days of anti-government protests.
2 mins
January 13, 2026
The Guardian
ADHD care costs soar as NHS turns to private sector
The NHS is overspending by £164m a year on attention deficit hyperactivity disorder services, with an increasing amount going to unregulated private assessments, a Guardian investigation has found.
3 mins
January 13, 2026
The Guardian
Media watchdog investigating Musk's X after backlash over sexualised AI images
The UK media watchdog has opened a formal investigation into Elon Musk's X over the use of the Grok AI tool to manipulate images of women and children by removing their clothes.
2 mins
January 13, 2026
Listen
Translate
Change font size