ONE in five families who care for a disabled relative are planning to cancel their Christmas celebrations this year due to soaring prices, research by a charity suggests. 

According to a survey of 1,007 families, released by disability charity Sense today, more than half said they were in debt and over a third were skipping meals to save money.

With energy bills soaring as temperatures drop below 0 across the country, over a third (38 per cent) said they will not buy Christmas presents, and a fifth (22 per cent) said they will cancel celebrations altogether.