Across the world, due to circumstances such as illness, frailty and disability, people provide unpaid assistance and support to their relatives, partners and friends. Within policy and literature this person is usually referred to as a 'carer' or 'caregiver'. In the United Kingdom (UK), one in eight adults (6.5 million people) are classed as carers (Carers UK, 2022). Due to an ageing population, more effective treatments for illnesses such as cancer, a decline in local authority funding and now COVID-19, the carer population is increasing at a faster rate than population growth (Larkin et al., 2019). Rising demand for informal care, therefore, makes it increasingly important to have a comprehensive understanding of carers' experiences. However, less is known about the experiences of men who care. This limits understanding on how to provide tailored support. Therefore, this study addresses that evidence gap.
| Gender and informal careWithin most countries and cultures, the majority of informal care is carried out by women (Verbakel et al., 2017). However, men also provide a substantial amount of care: around 4 in 10 carers are men in the United States (44%) and Scotland (41%), and around half (49%-51%) of all carers in Canada (