Carers UK Thinking Ahead resource - What Works Fund

1. Description of the programme
2. The study
3. What are the outcomes?
4. Key findings
5. Points to consider

• Description of the programme
• The study
• What are the outcomes?
• Key findings
• Points to consider
• Full report

Description of the programme

[This is an extract from the Executive Summary of the evaluation report. Further amendments may be made to this Summary, pending review by the Evidence Hub partner]

The aim of this project was to make working age people aware of the potential costs involved when friends or family need care, and to help people plan ahead for how they might approach this major life event. We sought to do this by developing and testing an online resource, Thinking Ahead, which has been designed as a single entry point for information, guidance and signposting to support on the potential impact of caring.

The UK has 6.5 million carers who are supporting a loved one who is older, disabled or seriously ill, and approximately 2 million people become carers each year. Whether caring begins gradually as age or illness progresses, or it starts suddenly following a birth, accident or diagnosis, caring is a key life transition that can have a huge impact on someone’s life. Carers UK’s 2014 State of Caring Survey found that over half of carers (54%) said that it took over a year for them to recognise their role as that of an unpaid carer and around half (48%) felt they had missed out on financial support as a result.

The primary target audience for our project was working-age people aged 18-65 who are in employment and have either identified as caring for a loved one or have not yet identified as caring for a loved one but could be affected by caring in the future. By encouraging working age people to think about the potential costs of caring, we intended to make them better prepared for looking after someone in the future.

The study

The outcome and process evaluation aimed to address the following research question:

‘Does a better understanding of the impacts of caring on their finances help working-age people in employment to make better decisions regarding how they plan for life events, like caring?’

The following evaluation methodology was used to gather quantitative and qualitative data to assess progress against each of the outcomes:

• Pre and post survey for users of Thinking Ahead resource
• 2-3 month follow-up survey to assess whether actions taken
• Semi-structured interviews

What are the outcomes?

• Mindset:
  • Financial confidence
  • Adaptability
• Ability:
  • Knowledge of how to access advice
  • Insurance
  • Savings vehicles and pensions
• Connection:
  • Financial engagement
  • Internet engagement
• FinCap Behaviour:
  • Managing and preparing for life events
  • Managing money well day-to-day
  • Credit and problem debt

Key findings

• Knowledge: After completing the resource, the largest gain in knowledge (experienced by 82% of people) was in relation to the costs of equipment, technology and adaptations to help make someone’s home safer, their life easier, and provide independence.
• Attitudes: A considerable amount of qualitative feedback indicated that the resource helped working age people to think about the future costs of caring and would in time help them to make better decisions relating to planning for major life events such as caring.
• Functionality: A substantial amount of qualitative feedback indicated that working age people found _Thinking Ahead _to be an helpful, informative and easy to follow guide to the potential costs of caring.

Points to consider

• Methodolodical considerations: Unfortunately the external evaluator was unable to draw any statistically valid conclusions from comparing the behaviours and knowledge of people before completing the resource and 2-3 months later, due to a lack of sufficient follow-up survey data.

Full report

Carers UK Thinking Ahead resource - full report