Elderly carers

One third provide 50 hours of care per week One in five struggles to pay essential bills More than half suffer a long standing illness or disability

It reveals that three-quarters of older people who live with the person they care for receive no regular visits from health, social services or home care agencies.

More than half of them put in long hours of intensive caring, on very low incomes, while suffering from serious health conditions themselves.

And many find it difficult to pay for essential services such as fuel bills.

Intensive care

One third of carers said they had never had a break and carers aged 75 or over were more likely to be providing intensive care than those aged between 60 and 74.

Gail Elkington, Help the Aged policy officer, said: "The NHS Plan is planning for 50,000 more people to stay in their own homes instead of residential care.

"But this must not be at the price of the health and wellbeing of their carers.

"Support for older people and their carers needs to be radically improved and local authorities need to make sure that older couples get the help they need without delay."

As community services are directed towards older people living alone, many older carers find they cannot access home care, day care or meals on wheels services, the charity warned.

It also claimed that the effects of a decade of underfunded community care are reflected in the report and calls on the government to undertake a fundamental review of social care.

Author of the report, Alison Milne, from the University of Kent, said: "It is time that services found ways to offer support to this very dedicated group of carers in a way that takes into account the specific circumstances of older couples, enabling a carer to provide care without placing themselves or their health at risk."

A Department of Health spokesperson said: "Carers play a vital role in the community and the government is determined to see that they get the support they need.

"The government's approach to carers is outlined in Caring About Carers, the report of the National Carers Strategy.

"It has three aims; better information for carers, better support for carers and better care for carers.

"We welcome the publication of this report and the way it highlights the needs of older carers.

"We will continue to work with carers organisations and local councils to improve the support available to carers."