Giving more before receiving: informal care provision in later life

The provision of informal care in later life is becoming increasingly important against the background of public expenditure cuts which threaten the level of support provided to older people and their carers. This paper uses data from waves 3 and 4 of the English Longitudinal Study of Ageing in order to explore the characteristics of carers aged 50 and over. The bivariate analysis explores the patterns of informal care provision in later life, including the hours of care provided per week and the relationship to the person cared for, as well as key socio-economic characteristics, such as housing tenure and the receipt of benefits from the welfare state. The multivariate analysis explores the determinants of becoming a round-the-clock carer in later life, defined as providing more than 110 hours of care per week. The results show that in terms of their health, socio-economic situation and receipt of state support, carers face a disadvantage compared to non-carers, while round-the-clock carers fare worse than other types of carers. Such results raise critical questions about the adequacy of social policy for this group of carers at a time of expenditure cuts.