Statistics on carers

Statistics on carers in Australia

• There are approximately 2.6 million carers in Australia – 13% of the population
• 474,600 are primary carers
• 71% of primary carers and 54% of all carers in Australia are women
• 45% of all carers of work force age are not in the labour force versus 34% of the total population
• The median gross personal income for a primary carer is $237 per week versus $397 for the general population
• 11.5% of the Indigenous population are carers
• Young carers: 3.6% of all people under 18, and 5.2% of all people under 25 are carers

View more statistics on carers in Australia

Statistics on carers in NSW

• There are 748,000 carers in NSW – 11% of the population
• 149,700 are primary carers
• 72% of primary carers and 54% of all carers in NSW are women
• 45% of all carers of work force age are not in the labour force versus 34% of the total population
• The median gross personal income for a primary carer is $224 per week versus $401 for the general population
• 12.4% of the NSW Indigenous population are carers
• Young carers: 2.6% of all people under 18, and 4% of all people under 25 are carers

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Statistics on the impact of caring
Statistics on the impact of caring on carers’ finances, employment, and physical and emotional wellbeing.

2006 Census of Population and Housing
The first ever Australian census to collect information on unpaid care including the need for assistance.

AIHW publications
Publications by the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare (AIHW) use and interpret the ABS SDAC data in a social context including themes such as the ageing population, increased participation of women in the workforce and government spending on Australian trends in their analysis of the data. Particularly useful are the series called Australia's Welfare and Australia’s Health. These reports are published in alternate years, and they include figures on the contribution of carers to the economy and the proportion of caring carried out by the household sector. An entire list of AIHW publications can be found at here and many can be downloaded.