Carer ID Cards

A carer ID card lets an unpaid carer show who they are at a GP surgery, on a hospital ward or at a pharmacy counter, without explaining their situation from the beginning every time.

Many schemes also put an emergency number on the card, so that if the carer is taken ill, whoever helps them knows there is someone at home who depends on them. CP Cards prints carer cards for local carers centres, councils, young carers services and NHS carer schemes, manufactured in England since 1992.

What goes on a carer card

• The carer’s name and card number
• The issuing organisation and its phone number
• An expiry or review date
• On emergency cards, a 24 hour number linked to the carer’s emergency plan

If your scheme uses the card as proof of identity, a photo can be added with photoseals.

Young carers cards

In school, a young carer card can let a pupil step out of a lesson to take a call from home, or ask for more time on homework, without explaining why to every teacher. Cards for younger holders can be brighter and plainer in their wording, and the 54 x 29mm key fob size fits on a school bag.

Cards issued as carers register

Carers register with a service throughout the year, one or two at a time. Our bureau personalisation service holds your printed cards in stock; when new carers register, email us a spreadsheet and we personalise and post those cards. There is no minimum call-off. We aim to dispatch the same day for files received before 1pm, and ask you to allow 3 working days.

Designing a card that protects the carer

Organisations such as Carers UK and Carers Trust support the local services that run carer card schemes. Whatever the scheme, the design questions are the same. The card should be recognised by the people who need to see it. An emergency card needs a number that reaches someone at any hour. And the card should say nothing about the person being cared for that a stranger should not read.

Why plastic

A carer card lives in a purse or on a lanyard for years. Laminated paper splits, and a home-printed card looks unofficial at the moment the carer most needs to be taken seriously. A printed PVC card looks and feels like the ID it is.

Content reviewed by the CP Cards team, September 2026.

Printed for carers services and councils

Carer cards are printed alongside the ID and membership cards we produce for charities, councils and community groups across the UK. You approve a free photorealistic proof before we print, and our design team can prepare the artwork from your logo and wording.

Carer ID Card FAQs

Can the cards be personalised with each carer's name?

Yes. Send a spreadsheet and each card is printed with its own name, number and expiry date.

Can we issue cards as new carers register?

Yes. Our bureau personalisation service holds printed cards in stock and personalises them as you send new names. Please allow 3 working days.

Can a photo be added to the card?

Yes. Photoseals fix a passport-sized photo to the card, and we can attach them for you.

What is the minimum order?

The first order is a minimum of 25 cards. Bureau call-offs after that have no minimum, so you can personalise one card at a time.