Julie Cooper MP and Carers UK have launched a new campaign, Park the Charges for Carers, as the Labour MP for Burnley proposes new legislation to exempt carers eligible for Carer’s Allowance from hospital parking charges in England.

 

The campaign launches as Carers UK analysis of data released by the Health and Social Care Information Centre this week shows that the percentage of hospitals charging patients and visitors to park has doubled in a decade (15% in 2004-05 to 30% in 2014-15).* Further analysis by the charity also reveals that of the NHS hospital Trusts that charge patients and visitors for parking in England, 63% have increased their charges since last year.  

 

Car parking charges can add to the financial hardship that many of the country’s carers already face. When people take on a caring role, they often face a steep drop in income if they have to leave work or reduce their hours to care; this is then coupled with a steep rise in expenditure as a result of the additional costs of caring and disability. Almost half of carers (48%) who responded to Carers UK’s annual State of Caring survey struggle to make ends meet and of these carers, almost 1 in 3 (30%) have had to use their savings to survive.[1] 

 

Jackie Puddifoot is one such carer who had to use her savings to cover the cost of hospital parking charges when her husband, David, had a long spell in hospital last year. Jackie cares full-time for David who has secondary progressive MS and hairy cell leukemia.

 

Jackie says: “As David’s wife and sole carer, I was at the hospital every day from 9.30am until 7pm. We live 22 miles from the hospital and rely on benefits as our sole income – so the expense of travelling to and from hospital every day and paying the parking charges was huge. We exhausted the little savings we had. Weekly parking tickets were available and cheaper than daily charges, but I never knew how long my husband would be in hospital for. The last thing I needed was to be worrying about car parking charges when I was anxious about whether my husband was going to make it or not. Carers are at such a disadvantage already, car parking charges are one extra penalty they do not need.”

 

The Park the Charges for carers campaign aims to drive public and political support for Julie Cooper MP’s Hospital Parking Charges (Exemption for Carers) Bill 2015-16. Should the Bill be successful, it will place a duty on health authorities to exempt the 1.1 million carers who are currently in receipt of, or who are eligible for, Carer’s Allowance from paying car parking charges in hospitals in England. 

 

Ahead of the Bill’s Second Reading in the House of Commons on Friday 30 October, the campaign has already achieved significant backing from over 1,000 carers and cross-party political support. 

 

Julie Cooper, Labour MP for Burnley, says: “Hospital car parking charges place an unfair burden on carers. Carers have told us that the emotional and financial impact of hospital parking charges seriously undermines their ability to continue caring well for their loved ones and themselves. This could be catastrophic for the NHS which, without carers, wouldn’t survive. The cost of providing carers with free hospital parking in England is negligible when compared with these potential consequences.

 

“With the huge demographic and financial challenges facing the NHS, it has never been more important to support carers. That is why I have put forward this Bill, urging politicians and health bosses alike to listen to what carers are telling them and park the charges for carers.” 

 

Heléna Herklots, Chief Executive of Carers UK, said: “We know that many people who care for a loved one end up in financial hardship because of their caring role. Visiting the hospital with someone you care for, perhaps during a crisis or a serious illness, can be a worrying, emotional and often exhausting time. As well as hospital parking charges having a clear financial impact on carers, the emotional impact should not be underestimated. 

 

“Free hospital car parking is just one of the many ways that hospitals in England can better support carers. This issue is incredibly important to carers, without whom the health service would collapse. With the public’s support and backing from cross-party MPs, we can make a meaningful difference to the lives of carers and their loved ones.”

 

 

Click here to find out more or to pledge your support for the Park the Charges for carers campaign.

 

 

 

 

 

Case studies and spokespeople are available upon request.

 

Please contact Lisa Gilbert, Senior Media and Case Study Officer at Carers UK on lisa.gilbert@carersuk.org, 020 7378 4937 or 07534 630 667 (out of hours).

 

 

 

* Health and Social Care Information Centre, Hospital Estates and Facilities Statistics 2014-15 and 2004-05: http://hefs.hscic.gov.uk/ReportFilter.asp?getReport=Get%20Report&FilterOpen=&Year=2014/2015%2001&Level=S&Section=S%2011&SHA=&PFI=&Org_Type=&Foundation=&Site_Type

 

In 2004-05, 341 hospital sites out of 2248 charged patients/visitors for parking = 15%

In 2014-15, 373 hospital sites out of 1251 charged patients/visitors for parking = 30%

 

[1] Carers UK (2015) State of Caring. Compared to the carer population as a whole, respondents to this survey were more likely to be female, disabled themselves and caring for a high number of hours every week.

 

 

Carers UK is a charity led by carers, for carers – our mission is to make life better for carers.

 

 

www.carersuk.org