Who is a carer?

The law defines a carer as someone who cares for:

• their husband, wife, partner or civil partner
• a child aged under 18
• a near relative - this includes parents, parents-in-law, adult children, adopted adult children, siblings, brothers and sisters-in-law, uncles, aunts, grandparents and step-relatives
• someone who lives at the same address as the carer.

This is the legal definition for specific purposes, for example, the right to request flexible working|.

The 2001 census revealed some interesting statistics about working carers:

• The vast majority of carers (80% or 8 in every 10 carers) are of working age, ie aged 16-65.
• As many as 3 million carers already combine work and care.
• Carers make up more than 12% (12 in 100) of the UK workforce.
• Every year, more than 2 million people become carers - so there are many new carers in the workforce every day.
• More than 3 in 5 people (60%) will become carers at some point in their lives.