Disability and unpaid caring are often discussed as distinct policy issues. In practice, they frequently overlap, shaping the same families’ health, work, income and living standards.
The Resolution Foundation’s July 2025 report, Don’t forget about us, examines how these pressures affect low-to-middle income families in Britain. Its findings suggest that the current debate should not be limited to benefit entitlement, but should also take account of work, care, public services and living standards.
Method
The report combines statistical analysis with qualitative evidence. It draws on major household datasets, including the Family Resources Survey and Understanding Society, to examine patterns of disability, unpaid care, income, deprivation and work. It also draws on three focus groups held in late 2024 with working-age adults who were disabled, carers, or both.
That mixed approach is useful. The data shows the scale of the issue, while the focus groups illustrate how these pressures are experienced in daily life.
Findings
The figures are significant. Working-age adults in low-to-middle income families are twice as likely to report being disabled as those on higher incomes: 30% compared with 15%.
The report also identifies a sharp rise among younger adults. Among 16 to 24-year-olds in these families, the proportion reporting disability has doubled over the past decade, from 10% to 21%. Almost all of that rise is attributed to mental health conditions.
Unpaid care is another substantial part of the picture. One in ten working-age adults in this income group provides at least five hours of unpaid care each week. Around 1 million provide at least 35 hours a week, equivalent to a full-time job.
The overlap between disability and caring is particularly important. More than two-fifths of low-to-middle income families include a disabled person or a carer, and around 800,000 working-age adults are both disabled and carers.
The effect on living standards is marked. Families with a disabled member are more likely to experience material deprivation. Where a family includes both a disabled person and a carer, almost half experience material deprivation.
The report also complicates a simple “in work or out of work” framing. Many disabled people and carers want to work, and many do. However, their options may be constrained by health, caring responsibilities, limited flexibility and insecure employment.
The policy question is therefore wider than benefits alone: how can employment, social security, health and care systems better support disabled people and carers to live securely, work where possible, and maintain a decent standard of living?
Source: https://www.resolutionfoundation.org/app/uploads/2025/07/Dont-forget-about-us.pdf
This is a neutral summary of the report.
Sean Kennedy
#Disability #UnpaidCarers #SocialPolicy #Poverty #LivingStandards
