Sandwich Generation Statistics: The UK Picture

The Office for National Statistics estimates there were around 1.4 million sandwich carers aged 16 to 64 in the UK between January 2021 and May 2023, that is, people caring for dependent children while also providing unpaid care to an older or disabled adult (ONS, Sandwich carers, UK, January 2021 to May 2023).

The term "sandwich generation" describes that squeeze between two sets of responsibilities. This page pulls together the main official figures on who these carers are and the pressures they report, then looks briefly at where later-life planning tends to come into it. Statistics are drawn from named sources and reference periods are shown at each point. Where legal or tax figures appear, they are current as at July 2026 and subject to change.

How many people are in the sandwich generation?

Around 1.4 million people aged 16 to 64 in the UK were sandwich carers between January 2021 and May 2023, according to the ONS analysis of the Understanding Society study (ONS, released 6 November 2024). For wider context, an estimated 5.0 million people provided unpaid care of any kind in England and Wales, about 9.0% of the population aged five and over, at Census 2021 (ONS, Unpaid care, England and Wales, Census 2021).

Who are the UK's sandwich carers?

Sandwich carers are more likely to be women and tend to be in mid-life. Around 61% were female and about 51% were aged 45 to 64 between January 2021 and May 2023, a somewhat older profile than parents of dependent children who are not also caring for an adult relative (ONS, Sandwich carers, UK, January 2021 to May 2023). Most care for a relative who lives elsewhere.

• Mostly women. About 61% of sandwich carers were female (ONS, January 2021 to May 2023).
• Often mid-life. Around 51% were aged 45 to 64 (ONS, January 2021 to May 2023).
• Caring at a distance. About 64% were "out-of-house" carers, looking after an adult relative living outside their own home, such as a parent (ONS, January 2021 to May 2023).
• Hours vary widely. Around 71% provided care for fewer than 20 hours a week, while about 26% provided 20 hours or more (ONS, January 2021 to May 2023).

Key figures at a glance

The table below gathers the headline statistics with their source and reference period. Each figure is an estimate from a named official source and is subject to revision. Percentages describing sandwich carers are drawn from the ONS bulletin covering January 2021 to May 2023 unless stated otherwise.

All figures are estimates from the Office for National Statistics and are subject to revision. The sandwich-carer percentages come from the Understanding Society study as analysed by the ONS.

How the picture has changed over time

Estimates of the sandwich generation have stayed broadly in the same range across recent ONS work. An earlier ONS analysis, using 2016 to 2017 data, put the figure at more than 1.3 million (about 3% of the population), while the later study covering January 2021 to May 2023 estimates around 1.4 million aged 16 to 64 (ONS, 2019, 2016-2017 data; ONS, January 2021 to May 2023). The two studies use different age scopes and methods, so the numbers are not directly comparable.

Unpaid caring overall was recorded at a lower rate in 2021 than a decade earlier: about 9.0% of the population aged five and over provided unpaid care at Census 2021 in England and Wales, down from 11.4% in 2011, though the ONS notes the census was taken during the coronavirus pandemic, which may have affected how people answered (ONS, Unpaid care, England and Wales, Census 2021).

What the numbers mean

Read together, the figures describe a group under pressure on several fronts at once: mid-life, more often women, and more likely than adults generally to report money worries and mental ill-health (ONS, January 2021 to May 2023). Because much of the caring is for a parent who lives elsewhere, a lot of it is likely to be arranging, coordinating and travelling rather than only hands-on help.

In our experience, that pattern often surfaces practical questions about an older relative's affairs, from who can act if they lose capacity to how any later care might be paid for. The statistics cannot tell you what any one family should do, and they are estimates rather than precise counts. What they do suggest is that these pressures are common, and that many people meet them without much of a plan in place. Several of the pressures the data highlights overlap with areas that later-life planning tends to address.

The sandwich generation is squeezed by time, money and worry at once. Planning ahead does not remove that squeeze, but it can make some of the decisions less pressured when they arrive.

Estate planning and the sandwich generation

For families caught in this squeeze, a handful of later-life planning topics come up repeatedly: powers of attorney for an ageing parent, how care might be funded, and how assets pass down the generations. None of this is unique to sandwich carers, but the data suggests many are managing an older relative's needs alongside their own household, which is often when these questions first arise. The points below are general information, not a recommendation for any particular family.

• Powers of attorney. A lasting power of attorney lets someone an adult trusts act for them if they later lose mental capacity; it has to be made while the person still has capacity (gov.uk, power of attorney, as at July 2026, subject to change). Many families find it easier to discuss this before a crisis rather than during one.
• Paying for care. Whether a local authority helps with care costs depends on a means test of income and capital, and the rules include "deprivation of assets" provisions, so deliberately giving away assets to reduce care charges can be challenged (gov.uk, paying for your care, as at July 2026, subject to change). The focus here is on understanding and, where possible, mitigating the impact of care fees, with advice, rather than trying to avoid them.
• Inheritance tax. Where an estate is large enough to be taxable, the standard rate is 40% on the part above the available thresholds, with a nil-rate band of £325,000 and a residence nil-rate band of up to £175,000 per person, and transfers between spouses or civil partners are generally exempt (gov.uk, Inheritance Tax, as at July 2026, subject to change). These thresholds are frozen to the end of the 2030-31 tax year (5 April 2031) (gov.uk).

For a fuller overview of how these pieces fit together, our estate planning guide walks through wills, trusts, powers of attorney and tax in one place. There is more detail on funding later-life care in our page on Care Home Fees, and on the wider caring context in our page on unpaid carers. Regulated products, such as a life policy written in trust or an investment bond, are not covered here and are best discussed with an FCA-authorised adviser.

Scotland and Northern Ireland

The ONS sandwich-carer estimates cover the whole UK, but the planning rules differ by nation. This page describes the law of England and Wales. Scotland has its own succession law, including legal rights that can give a spouse and children a fixed share of an estate, and it uses confirmation rather than a grant of probate. Northern Ireland has a separate but broadly similar system to England and Wales. Care funding is also administered differently across the nations, so it can be worth taking advice locally.

Sources and methodology

Every statistic on this page comes from the Office for National Statistics. Figures are estimates and subject to revision; the sandwich-carer percentages are drawn from the Understanding Society longitudinal study as analysed by the ONS. Sources are listed below with their reference periods.

• ONS, Sandwich carers, UK: January 2021 to May 2023 (released 6 November 2024). Numbers, demographics, care hours, financial hardship, food insecurity and mental-health measures.
• ONS, More than one in four sandwich carers report symptoms of mental ill-health (published 14 January 2019, using 2016 to 2017 data). Earlier estimate of more than 1.3 million sandwich carers.
• ONS, Unpaid care, England and Wales: Census 2021. Overall unpaid-care numbers and the change since 2011.
• gov.uk, Inheritance Tax, and gov.uk, Paying for your care, and gov.uk, Power of attorney (all as at July 2026, subject to change), for the planning figures and rules cited.

Frequently asked questions