The Centre for Investigative Journalism
The Centre for Investigative Journalism
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Summer Conference Events

26 June 2025

Paul Foot Award 2025: Carer’s Allowance Scandal

It didn't start as an "investigation" but within months a story that began with a relatively straightforward report about tens of thousands of unpaid carers being unfairly forced to repay thousands of pounds in benefits and prosecuted for fraud had snowballed: the injustices exposed by the ongoing reports scandalised the public, led to a government-commissioned independent review, and won the journalists behind the story the prestigious Paul Foot Award for investigative journalism.