This Government recognises and values the vital contribution made by carers in supporting some of the most vulnerable in society. The primary purpose of Carer’s Allowance is to provide a measure of financial support and recognition for people who give up the opportunity of full-time employment in order to provide regular and substantial care for a severely disabled person. It is not a “carer’s wage” or designed to fully replace the income from work that an unpaid carer may have foregone. The current rate of Carer’s Allowance is £69.70 per week. From April, the rate will increase to £76.75 per week. This means that, since 2010, it will have increased from £53.90 to £76.75 a week, providing around an additional £1200 a year for carers through Carer’s Allowance. In addition to Carer’s Allowance, carers on low incomes can claim income-related benefits, such as Universal Credit and Pension Credit. These benefits can be paid to carers at a higher rate than those without caring responsibilities through the carer element and the additional amount for carers respectively. From April, the Universal Credit carer element will be £185.86 per monthly assessment period, and the additional amount for carers in Pension Credit will be £42.75 a week. Around 489,000 (November 2022 data) carer households on Universal Credit can currently receive around an additional £2,000 a year through the carer element and this will increase to an additional £2,200 a year from April. The Government has chosen to focus extra support on those carers who need it most.