Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment has he made of the effect of the covid-19 outbreak on unpaid carers.

We recognise the vital role unpaid carers play, especially during this difficult period. We continue to work closely with carer organisations to understand the impact of the pandemic on carers.

To support carers, we have provided funding to Carers UK to extend their support phoneline, produced a leaflet to help carers identify themselves on discharge from hospital and published guidance specifically for carers and young carers, which includes further information about sources of support.

We also recognise the role of day-care services in providing respite for carers. We have worked with the Social Care Institute for Excellence to publish guidance to help make decisions on restarting services and to provide quality care safely. We also continue to work to understand the challenges for day services and are undertaking work with the Association of Directors of Adult Social Services and local authorities to understand barriers to opening day services.