Landmark Carer’s Leave Bill passes

All Stages

The Carer’s Leave Bill, which could see more than two million working carers get crucial access to one week of unpaid Carer’s Leave, has passed Report Stage and Third Reading in the House of Commons. The landmark Bill will now pass to the House of Lords for its next stages.

More than 78 MPs have supported this Private Member’s Bill, which was brought forward by Wendy Chamberlain MP, the Liberal Democrat MP for NorthEast Fife, in June 2022.

Millions of unpaid working carers in the UK face the daily pressures of juggling their unpaid caring role with paid employment. The stresses and strain of doing so has meant hundreds of thousands of carers have had to leave the labour market – 600 people per day, on average.

This Bill would mean that eligible employees could take Carer’s Leave for planned and foreseen caring commitments for the very first time.

Helen Walker, Chief Executive of Carers UK, said, ‘Passing this Bill will be a really critical step forward for unpaid carers juggling work and care and it would benefit employers as well. Today, we are a step closer to securing greater recognition, rights and support for unpaid carers in the workplace, which has been a priority for Carers UK for decades.

‘Carers need these rights. We know that two-thirds of working carers who have taken unpaid Carer’s Leave say that it has made their caring role easier, while one in 10 say they are at risk of reducing their hours or giving up work without access to it.

‘Employers who have Carer’s Leave are better able to retain staff and more carers could see staying in work as a viable option, bringing both short- and longterm financial benefits.

‘We look forward to supporting the Bill’s passage through the House of Lords.’

Wendy Chamberlain MP, said, ‘This is an amazing milestone on the way to giving millions more people the support they need to stay in work.’

Report on digital technology and community nursing

The Queen’s Nursing Institute (QNI) has published the results of a new survey of digital technology in community nursing.

The Nursing in the Digital Age report (2023) is based on an online survey completed by almost 1,200 practitioners during 2022. The survey results show that digital technology is being used creatively for a wide range of work and its use is firmly embedded across community nursing practice. Technology influences how, when and where nurses interact with patients and deliver their care.

Despite this, many nurses report that the application of digital technology in practice is poor and many feel it is not saving them time, when time is at a premium.

The survey responses were compared to the previous survey of digital technology carried out by the QNI in 2018, which enabled some trends to be identified. Examples include:

• In 2018, around 85% of respondents reported issues with mobile connectivity. In 2022, this figure was around 87%.

• In 2018, 32.7% reported problems with lack of compatibility between different computer systems. In 2022, the figure had risen to 43.1%.

• In 2018, 29.5% reported problems with device battery life, but in 2022 the figure was almost 53%.

Overall, the community nursing workforce has a high level of digital literacy – poor user experience appears to be around design and function, rather than a lack of computer literacy or enthusiasm. The workforce has an appetite for new technology and can see the potential of new applications, for example in managing wound care or longterm conditions. Indeed, some have taken an active part in the design of local solutions.

Detailed survey responses show that challenges regularly encountered by community nurses include short battery life, unsuitable hardware and software, old and cumbersome laptops, authentication challenges, use of multiple platforms, lack of integration and repetition of data entry.

Some nurses felt unsafe doing this or were worried about confidentiality, thus taking work home to complete in their own time.

Professor Alison Leary MBE, lead author of the report, said, ‘The survey results suggest there has been little improvement in either provision or functionality of community nursing technology in the past four years. Scheduling platforms were not generally seen as enablers of efficiency of work. They were felt to enable ‘tick box care’, leaving insufficient time for nursing work, and caused workload intensification. Nursing professionals do not like the loss of autonomy, which is a staff retention factor in a workforce that is already fragile and under increased stress.’

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