The National Carer Strategy 2024-2034 with its first Action Plan 2024-2027, has been launched by the Minister for Social Services Amanda Rishworth. This is the culmination of many months of consultation with carers and recognises their concerns, challenges, wishes and hopes for the future. Within a vision of recognising, valuing and empowering carers, it is underpinned by principles that include carer-centredness, supporting personal agency of carers, and accountability and transparency of policies and processes. A focus on carer respite, carer-friendly workforce participation initiatives, and early identification of carers within health settings are amongst many that are very welcome.

The first Action Plan includes a review of services that support carers, work to improve identification and recognition of carers, and an update of the Carer Recognition Act 2010.

Many ACT carers were involved in the development of the National Carer Strategy and we thank you all for your contribution. It was also pleasing to see the Recommendations that came from the recent Parliamentary Inquiry into the Recognition of Unpaid Carers are included in this new National Carer Strategy as ACT carers provided significant feedback into this process too.