Who is Caring for the Carers?

News - 6 November 2025

The lived reality of unpaid caring in Cornwall.
Photo of a middle aged woman pushing an older woman in a wheelchair across a field. It looks like early morning light in the sky, the sun is low on the horizon

If you help care for someone, we want to hear from you.

Please share your experiences with us. It takes about 5 minutes to complete our short, confidential survey. 

👉 Take the survey here

Your answers will help us build a true picture of caring in Cornwall and ensure carers’ voices are represented when decisions are made about local services and support.

What is an unpaid carer?

You might be a carer without realising it.

An unpaid carer is anyone who provides care or support to a family member, partner, friend or neighbour who couldn’t manage without their help. This could be because of illness, disability, mental health challenges, addiction, or age-related needs.

Caring can look like:

  • Helping with washing, dressing or medication
  • Doing the shopping, cleaning or cooking
  • Attending appointments or managing finances
  • Providing emotional support or company
  • Checking in regularly to make sure someone is safe

You don’t have to live with the person you care for, and you don’t have to provide care every day to be a carer.

If any of this sounds familiar you’re part of Cornwall’s caring community, even if you don’t call yourself a carer.

Why we’re asking “Who is Caring for the Carers?”

Across Cornwall, unpaid carers are quietly holding the health and care system together. Many are providing complex care with little or no support. Others have stepped in because paid services are unavailable, overstretched, or delayed. The emotional, physical and financial pressure can be huge, and yet this vital contribution often goes unseen.

Our new campaign, Who is Caring for the Carers?, aims to:

  • Make unpaid carers’ experiences visible and heard
  • Understand the pressures and barriers carers face
  • Show how caring roles are becoming unsustainable without more support
  • Inform decision-makers about what needs to change

This work will help shape recommendations to local services, support providers and decision-makers. 

Share your experience

If you help care for someone, we want to hear from you.

🕓 It takes about 5 minutes to complete our short, confidential survey.
Your answers will help us build a true picture of caring in Cornwall and ensure carers’ voices are represented when decisions are made about local services and support.

👉 Take the survey here

Why your voice matters

Every story adds to the picture. By sharing your experience, you’ll help:

  • Highlight where carers are filling gaps in the care system
  • Identify what support makes the biggest difference
  • Encourage earlier, preventative help for carers before crisis point
  • Make sure carers are recognised as a vital part of Cornwall’s care infrastructure

Get support right now

If you need help or advice as a carer, the following organisations can offer support: