What Is A Young Carer

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The difference between young carers and other young people who help in the home is that young carers are often responsible for someone else in their family in a way that most other young people aren't.

A young carer is someone aged 18 or under who helps to look after a relative who has a disability. Young carers are children or young people who also look after someone in their family who has an illness, a disability, a mental health problem. They may be taking on practical and/or emotional caring responsibilities that an adult would normally do.

The majority of young carers look after one of their parents or care for a brother or sister. They do jobs in and around the home, such as cooking, cleaning, or helping someone to get dressed and move around.

Young Carers also help an adult to cope with an addiction, and spending time helping a brother or sister to play.You and your family can ask for more help if you find yourself in this situation. Young carers may need to help a relative deal with their feelings by talking to them, listening and trying to understand their problems.

As a young carer it can be difficult to know what help is available and how you can get it. Health professionals such as GPs, or other professionals such as social workers who may visit the family home, can be a useful source of information.

Being a young carer can affect many areas of a young person’s life, including school and college, socialising and how you may feel about being a young carer.

Some children give a lot of physical help to a brother or sister who is disabled or ill. If you do, you are a sibling carer (sibling is a word for brother or sister). Along with physical help for your sibling, you may also be giving emotional support to both your sibling and your parents.

A young carer might also care for a grandparent or someone else from their extended family.

information from NHS Carers Direct