Date of meeting: 10 July 2025

Proposer: Councillor Goldsmith

Seconder: Councillor Earthey

Ward(s) affected: All

Notice of Motion

Green Group & Brighton & Hove Independent Group

This council notes:

1) Unpaid carers are estimated to save the government £162 billion every year^[1]

2) 44% of adults providing unpaid care for over 35 hours a week are in poverty, with nearly 8% of people receiving Carers Allowance relying on food banks^[2]

3) Carers Allowance is entirely deducted from Universal Credit payments and there is a ‘cliff edge’ when hitting the £196/week part-term earnings limit

4) The uncertainty remaining for those being prosecuted due to ‘overpayments’ of Carers Allowance, which for many was due the complexity of calculating allowances

5) Unpaid carers play a vital role in our City and should be recognised and compensated for the work they do

6) The government must take swift action to tackle poverty among unpaid carers and not worsen this with prosecutions

Therefore, resolves to:

1) Request that the Leader of the Council writes to the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care calling on them to:

a) Urgently address how money from Carers Allowance is treated in relation to Universal Credit;

b) Change rules around part-time earnings to allow unpaid carers to do more work and remove the ‘cliff-edge’;

c) Cease all current and future prosecutions of Carers Allowance overpayments;

d) Enable currently unpaid carers to be able to be paid as carers for family members; and

e) Simplify the system for unpaid carers to calculate allowances and expenses.

2) Request that a report is brought to Cabinet to consider the option of carrying out a consultation to assess the needs of unpaid carers locally and to explore what the council can do to better support them.

Supporting Notes

[1] Unpaid care in England and Wales valued at £445 million per day: https://www.carersuk.org/press-releases/unpaid-care-in-england-and-wales-valued-at-445-million-per-day/

[2] Heading for crisis: Caught between caring and rising costs: https://www.carersuk.org/media/x5sfjlbx/heading_for_crisis_report.pdf