Carers UK
Encyclopedia
Carers UK is the main membership charity in the United Kingdom
for carers. It was formed by the merger of two existing voluntary organisations on May 14, 1988. Originally constituted as Carers National Association it was renamed Carers UK in 2001.
Carers UK also organises Carers Rights Day, produces leaflets and a magazine, and has a free carers helpline.
The Chief Executive Officer is Imelda Redmond CBE, and the registered address is:
Carers UK,
20 Great Dover Street,
London,
SE1 4LX
Carers UK currently has staffed offices in five major UK cities; London (HQ), Glasgow, Belfast, Cardiff and Manchester. National committees exist in the devolved countries with some degree of autonomy to formulate local responses to the national devolved assemblies and their policy processes.
newspaper by a carer, the Reverend Mary Webster, concerning the difficulties that confronted single women when they faced the complex task of earning the family living and caring for the home, the sick and the elderly. She began writing to newspapers, journals, MPs and peers drawing attention to the isolation and financial hardship that women carers were suffering. Her letters received a huge response from hundreds of women in similar situations.
Baroness Seear was an early supporter. Due to her intervention, a meeting was held in the Grand Committee Room of the House of Commons. Other early supporters and fundraisers included Sir Keith Joseph, MP.
In 1981 the UK Association of Carers was formed, aided by a grant of £9,879 from the Equal Opportunities Commission
. The group campaigned for Invalid Care Allowance to be extended to married women. Following a test case brought to the European Court on behalf of Jackie Drake, in June 1986 the government capitulated.
In 1982 The National Council for the Single Woman and Her Dependants was renamed "The National Council for Carers and their Elderly Dependants" in an attempt to be more inclusive. Carers National Association was formed by the merger of the two existing voluntary organizations on May 14, 1988. and was renamed Carers UK in 2001.
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
for carers. It was formed by the merger of two existing voluntary organisations on May 14, 1988. Originally constituted as Carers National Association it was renamed Carers UK in 2001.
Charitable purposes
Carers UK provides information to carers and leads campaigns to improve carers' rights and tackle inequality. It has been instrumental in securing the first ever legal rights for carers. These include :- the Carers (Recognition and Services) Act 1995
- the Carers and Disabled Children Act 2000
- the Carers (Equal Opportunities) Act 2004
- the Work and Families Act 2006
Carers UK also organises Carers Rights Day, produces leaflets and a magazine, and has a free carers helpline.
The Chief Executive Officer is Imelda Redmond CBE, and the registered address is:
Carers UK,
20 Great Dover Street,
London,
SE1 4LX
Governance and organisation
Carers UK is a member-led organisation, with a membership that has fluctuated between 7-12,000 individual members. Members elect the Trustees who must always be a majority of carers.Carers UK currently has staffed offices in five major UK cities; London (HQ), Glasgow, Belfast, Cardiff and Manchester. National committees exist in the devolved countries with some degree of autonomy to formulate local responses to the national devolved assemblies and their policy processes.
History and origins
In 1965 the National Council for the Single Woman and her Dependants was formed following a letter to The TimesThe Times
The Times is a British daily national newspaper, first published in London in 1785 under the title The Daily Universal Register . The Times and its sister paper The Sunday Times are published by Times Newspapers Limited, a subsidiary since 1981 of News International...
newspaper by a carer, the Reverend Mary Webster, concerning the difficulties that confronted single women when they faced the complex task of earning the family living and caring for the home, the sick and the elderly. She began writing to newspapers, journals, MPs and peers drawing attention to the isolation and financial hardship that women carers were suffering. Her letters received a huge response from hundreds of women in similar situations.
Baroness Seear was an early supporter. Due to her intervention, a meeting was held in the Grand Committee Room of the House of Commons. Other early supporters and fundraisers included Sir Keith Joseph, MP.
In 1981 the UK Association of Carers was formed, aided by a grant of £9,879 from the Equal Opportunities Commission
Equal Opportunities Commission
The Equal Opportunities Commission was an independent non-departmental public body, in the United Kingdom, which tackled sex discrimination and promoted gender equality...
. The group campaigned for Invalid Care Allowance to be extended to married women. Following a test case brought to the European Court on behalf of Jackie Drake, in June 1986 the government capitulated.
In 1982 The National Council for the Single Woman and Her Dependants was renamed "The National Council for Carers and their Elderly Dependants" in an attempt to be more inclusive. Carers National Association was formed by the merger of the two existing voluntary organizations on May 14, 1988. and was renamed Carers UK in 2001.