Young Carer DWP overpayment debt repayment

Aim: My name is Rose Jones. I was a carer for my mum from the age of eight until twenty. As Patrick Butler reported recently in the Guardian ‘...

My name is Rose Jones. I was a carer for my mum from the age of eight until twenty. As Patrick Butler reported recently in the Guardian
I ‘unwittingly breached carers allowance benefit earnings rules after joining a government youth employment scheme’ after being told twice by my work coach that I was entitled to keep claiming carers allowance.

The government have demanded a repayment of £2145.60 from me. I have so far repaid £826 and have £1320.60 more to pay.

This crowdfunder has been set up specifically to receive donations from the people who contacted the Guardian offering to help me repay the debt after reading Patrick’s article.

I have set the total amount at £2196 which covers the amount of the debt and the 2.4% Crowdfunder fees. I am not seeking donations over this amount. If people choose to donate more than this amount, I will split any extra money equally between Southampton Young Carers, who supported me as a young carer, The Paul Foot award, which Patrick Butler won with Josh Halliday for his work on the carers overpayment story, and something significant towards my own future security.

I am enormously grateful to Patrick for speaking to me about his and for sharing my story, and to everyone who has offered help. It has been so relieving to hear that I am not the only one in this situation and that others see it as unjust. I hope that others seeing my story will have the courage to speak about their own experiences with the carers allowance overpayments.

Funding method

Keep what you raise – this project will receive all pledges made by 10th August 2025 at 1:01pm