In the 1980s, as the proportion of elderly people in the population grew steadily larger, the task of looking after them would fall increasingly on one group – daughters. The government, in promoting its move in social policy towards community care, had stated that ‘the family’ – which in practice meant women – must expect to provide the bulk of care in the future. But how do women feel about this? What impact does caring for others have on their own lives? How might professional helpers b...