Young Carers
Age Range?
The ages that children become young carers range between 8 years old to 19 years old.
What do they do?
They have some form of caring responsibility for a family member who has a disability, long term illness or addiction.
What kind of disability or illness?
It could include physical disabilities, mental health issues, learning disabilities, drugs/alcohol misuse issues and long-term illnesses such as epilepsy, diabetes and cancer.
What are their responsibilities?
Tasks may range from practical ones (e.g. cooking, cleaning, caring for siblings) to emotional ones (e.g. giving reassurance, preventing the cared for person from harming themselves) to personal care (e.g. washing and bathing). The care provided can often be inappropriate for their age.
Who do they care for?
It may be a parent, sibling, grandparent or any other member of their family, usually who lives in the same household
What’s the impact?
The impact of being a younger carer can impact everything on a day-to-day basis, this can involve:
- Education – unable to do boosters, homework or course work
- Physical Health – such as injuries to themselves from support with someone care needs
- Emotional/mental health and wellbeing – unable to speak to anyone about their experiences
- Behaviour/behavioural development – feeling frustrated, angry or upset
- Family and social relationships – unable to socialise outside of school hours/pressure of needing to support others
How do you identify a Young Carer?
Remember! The above factors could also be indicators of other issues in a child or young person’s life – not necessarily that they are a Young Carer.
Why might Young Carers NOT want to be identified?
They may worry that:
- Their family could be split up,
- they could be bullied, people will know about their home life,
- they are meant to keep their caring role secret,
Or:
- they may not even realise that they are a Young Carer,
- they may not feel that they need support – not all Young Carers do.