Social care for older adults
This report examines the need for and receipt of social care among adults aged 65 and over in England in 2017 and the extent to which these older adults receive the support they need. It looks at adults aged 16 and over who provide unpaid care to family members or friends. It compares different population groups by age, sex, region, income and area deprivation.
Highlights
- 23% of men and 28% of women aged 65 and over needed help with at least one Activity of Daily Living (ADL). 22% and 30% respectively needed help with at least one Instrumental Activity of Daily Living (IADL).
- 20% of men and 25% of women aged 65 and over had some unmet need with at least one ADL, and 12% of men and 15% of women had some unmet need with at least one IADL. Unmet need for care increased with age for both ADLs and IADLs.
- The majority of adult carers aged 65 and over who received help did so from unpaid helpers only (68%). The proportions who received help from paid helpers, whether alone or as well as unpaid help, increased with age.
- 16% of adult carers aged 16 and over reported providing unpaid help or support to at least one person with long-term mental or physical health problems, disabilities or problems related to old age. Women were more likely than men to have done so (18% and 14% respectively).
- The majority of adult carers (56%) said that they had received no support in providing care. Adults aged 16 to 44 were more likely to report receiving support from other family members than those aged 65 and over.
- Just over half of adult carers aged 16 and over said that their caring role had an effect on their health (51%). Women were more likely than men to report these effects on their health. The most common impacts on carers’ health were feeling tired (29% of men and 39% of women), general feelings of stress (24% of men and 37% of women) and disturbed sleep (21% of men and 28% of women).
Download the tables for this report here.