Invisible, Exhausted, Essential: Reframing Carer Support in the Modern Workplace

Across the UK, an estimated 1 in 7 employees is also an unpaid carer. Behind every team meeting, shift pattern, or calendar invite, there’s someone silently managing medication schedules, hospital appointments, personal care routines, or moments of emotional crisis for a loved one. 

And most of the time, no one knows. 

Carers don’t tend to raise their hand. They don’t broadcast their responsibilities. Often, they’re the ones who quietly keep everything together, at home and at work, until the pressure becomes too much. They leave early. They burn out. Or they leave work altogether. 

Carers Week gives us a moment to stop and see this invisible workforce. But visibility alone isn’t enough. We need action. 

Caring Is Work. And It’s Affecting Your Workforce More Than You Think. 

Each year, over 600 people in the UK leave the workplace every day due to caring responsibilities (Carers UK, 2022). That’s over 200,000 skilled employees lost annually, not because they want to stop working, but because the support structures around them simply don’t flex to meet the reality of their lives. 

This isn’t just a wellbeing issue. It’s a workforce one. 

• The average cost to replace a public sector employee sits between £5,000–£10,000. 

• 30% of working carers say they’ve considered leaving their job if they can't get support (CIPD, 2022). 

• Carer burnout contributes to rising stress-related absences, presenteeism, and diminished productivity across sectors. 

And yet, many of the wellbeing solutions available today miss the mark. They target stress, crisis, or general engagement, but not the practical, daily strain of juggling work and care. That’s the gap Sacana was built to close. 

Support That’s Structured, Stigma-Free, and Actually Works 

At Sacana, we don’t provide clinical care. We don’t replace EAPs. What we do is offer structured, human conversation, a scalable layer of preventative social connection that supports both carers and those they care for. 

Here’s how it works: 

• A working carer registers for Sacana through their employer or benefits portal. 

• Their loved one (often an older relative) receives regular, real-time video conversations from trained affiliate Matrons. 

• These are not casual chats. They are structured, safeguarded, and grounded in evidence-based connection. 

• The result: the carer can work knowing their loved one is socially supported, reducing stress, guilt, and burnout. 

This support also works in reverse: employees who are carers themselves can access Sacana directly to reduce their own experience of loneliness or social disconnection which is common for those giving everything to others. 

It’s one of the few models where both sides of the carer dynamic are supported equally. 

From Quiet Guilt to Active Support 

Caring responsibilities don’t fit neatly into a benefits package. They show up as lateness, time off, mental overload, or the occasional blank stare in a Teams meeting. Without the right support, they become a silent reason why your workforce starts to fray. 

But when carers are given space, flexibility, and reassurance, when they know that someone is there for the person they love, everything changes. 

“Sacana helped me do my job without constantly worrying. Knowing my mum had someone kind to speak with changed everything.” 
- Working Carer, Partner Organisation 

Carers are loyal. They’re resilient. And with the right support, they stay. 

What Employers Can Do Now 

This Carers Week, recognition is just the start. The real impact comes when organisations move from empathy to action. 

• Include carers in your wellbeing strategy. Not just as a footnote, but as a core focus. 

• Offer flexible access to structured services like Sacana, where stigma-free, preventative support is built in. 

• Treat carer wellbeing as workforce protection. Because it is. 

When we protect carers, we protect productivity, morale, and continuity. But more than that, we do the right thing for the people who show up for everyone else, day after day. 

Sacana: For Carers. For Employers. For Impact. 

We’re launching Sacana nationally in June 2025, and we’re already working with forward-thinking employers to build carer wellbeing into the heart of workforce strategy. 

Because supporting carers isn’t just a compassionate act. It’s a strategic one. 

Talk. Connect. Thrive. 

Connect with us at enquiries@sacana.com