Throughout history families have cared for elderly and disabled relatives at home, meeting personal care needs and providing practical support. But medical, social and economic changes over the last few decades means that caring has a much bigger impact on families and communities than ever before. Not only are people living longer with disabilities and health conditions, but most women work rather than stay at home and families are typically smaller so the responsibility to provide care falls on fewer people.

The social care system has failed to keep up with these trends. People who develop Alzheimer’s in their fifties might live for another three decades; many young people with profound learning disabilities can expect to live well in to adulthood. Yet the support they need is not provided by the National Health Service, but by patchy means-tested social care services delivered by local authorities. Many women in their sixties are supporting their adult children by providing childcare, but also caring for their parents in their nineties.  This reliance on family for mutual support between the generations is nothing new, but the constraints that families face – in terms of stretched time, financial resources and emotional resilience – are tougher than ever.

The coalition’s policies will make things even more difficult, with cuts to disability benefits and local authority budgets expected to have a significant impact on carers. Labour should make reversing cuts to disability benefits a priority if we win in 2015, but we should also ensure that carers are part of our plans for wider welfare reform. During 13 years in government Labour failed to reform Carer’s Allowance. At just £55 for a minimum of 35 hours care per week it is insultingly low. It also sits uncomfortably when categorised with other ‘out of work’ benefits given that recipients are anything but inactive. The coalition has also ducked the issue, keeping Carer’s Allowance out of the new Universal Credit, but offering little in terms of a vision for the future.

Labour therefore has an opportunity to reconsider carers’ benefits as part of its review of welfare policy. A restored contributory principle, as outlined by Liam Byrne earlier this year, could mean higher levels of benefits to people who have paid in to the system, whether through paid work or voluntary activity, including caring. This would be seen as fairer to those who sacrifice so much, yet end up in poverty and reliant on means-tested handouts.

As well as reforming benefits for those who have to give up work to care, Labour should also put forward a positive case for supporting the more than three million carers who combine their caring role with employment. The last Labour government extended the right to request flexible working to carers, but in many workplaces caring for a disabled or older person still feels less culturally acceptable than caring for a child. Carers can feel they need to hide their role from colleagues. Trade unions and managers should encourage carers to be open about their role and ask for the flexibility they need, and employers should meet these needs wherever possible.  This might mean a request to start later to fit the opening times for the day centre in the same way that a parent would for a nursery. Now that carers are covered by the Equality Act, their needs should be considered in employers’ equality policies and training.

Another idea Labour could consider is to strengthen the right for carers to take time off to deal with a crisis and be able to return to their job, similar to existing rights for parental leave. When I worked with carers, I heard of people giving up their job to deal with an immediate crisis – a stroke, car crash or even a planned operation – because their employer wouldn’t let them take off the time that they needed. At the moment they have the right to time off in an emergency, but this is only intended to last a few days. When faced with such a crisis it can seem that life will never be the same again, but families do pull through, get the support they need or find that the person recovers. Yet if the carer has left their job the impact on the family may be felt for years. Even a month when the carer could have the option to return to their job would make a big difference to those affected and give them the time and space they need to focus on looking after their loved one, and preventing another person being added to the unemployment roll should be in all our interests.

Through these policies Labour could show that in contrast to the cruel cuts of the Tory-led government it is on the side of carers – a group who give so much to society, yet receive so little in return.

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Kate Groucutt is a Labour councillor in the London borough of Islington. She has worked on family policy for a variety of organisations, including Carers UK, but writes here in a personal capacity. She tweets @KateGroucutt

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Find out more about Supporting Parents and Carers Spotlight Day here

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Writing in support of Spotlight Day today are Usdaw general secretay John Hannett, Usdaw MPs Hazel Blears and Yvonne Fovargue, Welsh AM and Janice Gregory and Islington councillor Kate Groucutt. Read them all here