Southend adult carers survey
This report details findings from the 2023/24 Survey of Adult Carers in England, undertaken on behalf of Southend-on-Sea Borough Council, Adult Social Services.
A random selection of carers who had contact with Adult Social Services, or an organisation working on behalf of Adult Social Services over the last 12 months, were invited to participate in the survey.
The survey asks carers about their views on the services they and the person they care for receive and their quality of life.
National findings can be found on NHS England.
You can also access the SACE Interactive Report.
Survey Results 2023/24
500 survey packs were issued in October 2023, with a follow up to non-respondents in November 2023. 160 completed questionnaires were returned. The response rate for this survey is 32%.
Percentages are rounded to the nearest whole number and totals may be greater or less than 100% due to this.
Question 1
How old is the person you care for?
| Age band of cared person | Percent |
|---|---|
| 18-24 | 13% |
| 25-34 | 5% |
| 35-44 | 1% |
| 45-54 | 3% |
| 55-64 | 3% |
| 65-74 | 9% |
| 75-84 | 28% |
| 85 plus | 39% |
Total responses - 150
Question 2
Does the person you care for have...?
| Answer options | Percent |
|---|---|
| Problems connected to ageing | 50% |
| A physical disability | 44% |
| Dementia | 42% |
| Sight or hearing loss | 20% |
| Long-standing illness | 24% |
| A learning disability or difficulty | 27% |
| A mental health problem | 8% |
| Terminal illness | 4% |
| Alcohol or drug dependency | 0% |
Total responses - 156 (respondents could select more than option)
Question 3
Where does the person you care for usually live?
| Answer options | Percent |
|---|---|
| With me | 61% |
| Somewhere else | 39% |
Total responses - 157
Question 4
Overall, how satisfied or dissatisfied are you with the support or services you and the person you care for have received from Social Services in the last 12 months?
| Answer options | Percent |
|---|---|
| We haven't received any support or services from Social Services in the last 12 months | 19% |
| I am extremely satisfied | 6% |
| I am very satisfied | 28% |
| I am quite satisfied | 28% |
| I am neither satisfied nor dissatisfied | 9% |
| I am quite dissatisfied | 4% |
| I am very dissatisfied | 3% |
| I am extremely dissatisfied | 2% |
Total responses - 158
Question 5
Has the person you care for used any of the support or services listed below in the last 12 months?
| Answer options | Yes percentage |
|---|---|
| a. Support or services allowing you to take a break from caring at short notice or in an emergency | 8% |
| b. Support or services allowing you to take a break from caring for more than 24 hours | 17% |
| c. Support or services to allow you to have a rest from caring for between 1 and 24 hours (e.g. a sitting service) | 15% |
| d. Personal assistant | 13% |
| e. Home care/home help | 46% |
| f. Day center or day activities | 20% |
| g. Lunch club | 2% |
| h. Meals Services | 5% |
| i. Equipment or adaptation to their home (such as a wheelchair or handrails) | 56% |
| j. Lifeline Alarm | 20% |
| k. They are permanently resident in a care home | 11% |
Total responses - 159 (respondents could select more than option)
Question 6
Have you used any of the support or services listed below, to help you as a carer over the last 12 months?
| Answer options | Yes percentage |
|---|---|
| a. Information and advice | 49% |
| b. Support from carers groups or someone to talk to in confidence | 22% |
| c. Training for carers | 2% |
| d. Support to keep you in employment | 3% |
Total responses - 159 (respondents could select more than option)
Question 7
Which of the following statements best describes how you spend your time?
| Answer options | Percent |
|---|---|
| I'm able to spend my time as I want, doing things I value or enjoy | 36% |
| I do some of the things I value or enjoy with my time but not enough | 52% |
| I don't do anything I value or enjoy with my time | 11% |
Total responses - 149
Question 8
Which of the following statements best describes how much control you have over your daily life?
| Answer options | Percent |
|---|---|
| I have as much control over my daily life as I want | 36% |
| I have some control over my daily life but not enough | 54% |
| I have no control over my daily life | 10% |
Total responses - 149
Question 9
Thinking about how much time you have to look after yourself - in terms of getting enough sleep or eating well - which statement best describes your present situation?
| Answer options | Percent |
|---|---|
| I look after myself | 67% |
| Sometimes I can't look after myself well enough | 25% |
| I feel I am neglecting myself | 7% |
Total responses - 150
Question 10
Thinking about your personal safety, which of the statements best describes your present situation?
| Answer options | Percent |
|---|---|
| I have no worries about my personal safety | 87% |
| I have some worries about my personal safety | 11% |
| I am extremely worried about my personal safety | 2% |
Total responses - 154
Question 11
Thinking about how much social contact you've had with people you like, which of the following statements best describes your social situation?
| Answer options | Percent |
|---|---|
| I have as much social contact as I want with people I like | 39% |
| I have some social contact with people but not enough | 50% |
| I have little social contact with people and feel socially isolated | 11% |
Total responses - 153
Question 12
Thinking about encouragement and support in your caring role, which of the following statements best describes your present situation?
| Answer options | Percent |
|---|---|
| I feel I have encouragement and support | 49% |
| I feel I have some encouragement and support but not enough | 40% |
| I feel I have no encouragement and support | 11% |
Total responses - 151
Question 13
Thinking about the other people you have caring responsibilities for, which of the following best describes your current situation? Please exclude the person you spend most time helping.
| Answer options | Percent |
|---|---|
| I don't have caring responsibilities for anyone else | 60% |
| I always have enough time to care for them | 18% |
| I sometimes have enough time to care for them | 17% |
| I never have enough time to care for them | 5% |
Total responses - 153
Question 14
In the last 12 months, has your health been affected by your caring role in any of the ways listed below?
| Answer options | Percent |
|---|---|
| Feeling tired | 63% |
| General feeling of stress | 52% |
| Disturbed sleep | 53% |
| Feeling depressed | 33% |
| Short tempered/ irritable | 34% |
| Physical strain (e.g. back) | 23% |
| Made an existing condition worse | 15% |
| Developed my own health conditions | 13% |
| Had to see own GP | 14% |
| No, none of these | 22% |
| Loss of appetite | 9% |
| Other | 1% |
Total responses - 152 (respondents could select more than option)
Question 15
In the last 12 months, has caring caused you any financial difficulties?
| Answer options | Percent |
|---|---|
| No, not at all | 62% |
| Yes, to some extent | 31% |
| Yes, a lot | 7% |
Total responses - 153
Question 16
How often do you feel lonely?
| Answer options | Percent |
|---|---|
| Often or always | 5% |
| Some of the time | 24% |
| Occasionally | 28% |
| Hardly ever | 19% |
| Never | 24% |
Total responses - 152
Question 17
In the last 12 months, have you found it easy or difficult to find information and advice about support, services or benefits? Please include information and advice from different sources, such as voluntary organisations and private agencies as well as Social Services.
| Answer options | Percent |
|---|---|
| I have not tried to find information or advice in the last 12 months | 34% |
| Very easy to find | 7% |
| Fairly easy to find | 39% |
| Fairly difficult to find | 15% |
| Very difficult to find | 6% |
Total responses - 157
Question 18
In the last 12 months, how helpful has the information and advice you have received been? Please include information and advice from different organizations, such as voluntary organizations and private agencies as well as Social Services.
| Answer options | Percent |
|---|---|
| I have not received any information or advice in the last 12 months | 36% |
| Very helpful | 23% |
| Quite helpful | 34% |
| Quite unhelpful | 5% |
| Very unhelpful | 3% |
Total responses - 154
Question 19
In the last 12 months, do you feel you have been involved or consulted as much as you wanted to be, in discussions about the support or services provided to the person you care for?
| Answer options | Percent |
|---|---|
| There have been no discussions that I am aware of, in the last 12 months | 28% |
| I always felt involved or consulted | 27% |
| I usually felt involved or consulted | 24% |
| I sometimes felt involved or consulted | 16% |
| I never felt involved or consulted | 5% |
Total responses - 155
Question 20
In addition to your caring role, please tell us which of the following also applies to you?
| Answer options | Percent |
|---|---|
| Retired | 51% |
| Employed full-time | 14% |
| Not in paid work | 12% |
| Employed part-time (working 30 hours or less) | 21% |
| Doing voluntary work | 5% |
| Self-employed part-time | 3% |
| Other | 4% |
| Self-employed full-time | 1% |
Total responses - 154 (Respondents could select more than option)
Question 21
Thinking about combining your paid work and caring responsibilities, which of the following statements best describes your current situation?
| Answer options | Percent |
|---|---|
| I am not in paid employment for other reasons (e.g. Retired) | 51% |
| I am not in paid employment because of my caring responsibilities | 9% |
| I am in paid employment and I feel supported by my employer | 27% |
| I do not need any support from my employer to combine my work and caring responsibilities | 7% |
| I am self-employed and I am able to balance my work and caring responsibilities | 5% |
| I am in paid employment but I don't feel supported by my employer | 1% |
| I am self-employed but I am unable to balance my work and caring responsibilities | 0% |
Total responses - 154
Question 22
About how long have you been looking after or helping the person you care for?
| Answer options | Percent |
|---|---|
| 20 years or more | 22% |
| Over 5 years but less than 10 years | 15% |
| Over 1 year but less than 3 years | 22% |
| Over 3 years but less than 5 years | 23% |
| Over 10 years but less than 15 years | 7% |
| Over 15 years but less than 20 years | 6% |
| Over 6 months but less than a year | 5% |
| Less than 6 months | 1% |
Total responses - 153
Question 23
About how long do you spend each week looking after or helping the person you care for?
| Answer options | Percent |
|---|---|
| 100 or more hours per week | 23% |
| 20-34 hours per week | 13% |
| Other | 7% |
| 10-19 hours per week | 16% |
| 0-9 hours per week | 10% |
| 75-99 hours per week | 3% |
| Varies - 20 hours or more per week | 8% |
| 50-74 hours per week | 7% |
| 35-49 hours per week | 11% |
| Varies - Under 20 hours per week | 3% |
Total responses - 151
Question 24
Over the last 12 months, what kinds of things did you usually do for the person you care for?
| Answer options | Percent |
|---|---|
| Other practical help? | 86% |
| Keeping an eye on him/her to see he/she is all right? | 83% |
| Helping with paperwork or financial matters? | 84% |
| Helping with dealing with care services and benefits? | 80% |
| Giving emotional support? | 73% |
| Keeping him/her company? | 79% |
| Taking him/her out? | 46% |
| Giving medicines? | 53% |
| Personal care? | 52% |
| Physical help? | 42% |
| Other help? | 11% |
Total responses - 158 (respondents could select more than option)
Question 25
Do you have any of the following?
| Answer options | Percent |
|---|---|
| A long-standing illness | 18% |
| A physical impairment or disability | 13% |
| Sight or hearing loss | 9% |
| Other | 10% |
| A mental health problem or illness | 7% |
| A learning disability or difficulty | 2% |
| None of the above | 57% |
Total responses - 151 (respondents could select more than option)
Question 26
How many children aged 18 or under do you have parental responsibility for?
| Value | Percent |
|---|---|
| 0 | 90% |
| 1 | 7% |
| 2 | 2% |
| 3 | 1% |
| 4+ | 0% |
Total responses - 152
Question 27
Did someone help you to complete this questionnaire?
| Answer options | Percent |
|---|---|
| Yes | 8% |
| No | 92% |
Total responses - 154