Young Carers in Schools Key information about young carers

Do you know how many pupils are likely to young carers in Manchester? A young carer is someone under 18 who helps look after someone in their family, or a friend, who is ill, disabled or misuses drugs or alcohol. Do you know how many pupils are likely to young carers in Manchester? © Carers Trust Quiz your audience to see if they know how many young carers there are likely to be at the school. Answer on the following slide!

As many as 2 pupils in every class could be a young carer! The 2011 Census identified 166, 363 young carers in England – one in 8 was under the age of ten. BUT many young carers are hidden. BBC research suggests as many as one in 12 secondary aged pupils are young carers. The 2011 Census identified 166,363 young carers aged under 18 years old in England, with one in eight under the age of ten. These figures are likely to be a significant under representation as many young carers are hidden. Research from the BBC in 2010 found that as many as one in 12 secondary school pupils have a moderate or high levels of caring responsibility. That’s 2 per class! If your audience are interested they can find out more about the BBC research reported here: http://www.bbc.co.uk/newsbeat/11758368 35% of young carers said that nobody in their school was aware of their caring role.

Help your audience find out more about what it is like to be a young carer by playing the video or telling your own “day in the life” about what it is like to be a young carer. Make sure your audience know: 1) The tasks and level of caring undertaken by young carers can vary according to the nature of the illness or disability, the level and frequency of need for care, and the structure of the family as a whole. 2) Young carers often take on practical and/or emotional caring responsibilities that would normally be expected of an adult. These can include: Practical tasks – cooking, housework and shopping. Physical care – lifting or helping someone use the stairs. Personal care – dressing, washing, helping with toileting needs. Emotional support – listening, calming, being present. Managing the family budget, collecting benefits and prescriptions. Medication management. Looking after younger siblings. Helping someone communicate. Young carers often take on practical and/or emotional caring responsibilities that would normally be expected of an adult.

Caring can affect a young person’s: Physical health Emotional wellbeing Socialisation Stable environment Caring can affect a young person’s: Physical health: Young carers are often severely affected by caring through the night, repeatedly lifting a heavy adult, poor diet and lack of sleep. Emotional wellbeing: Stress, tiredness and mental ill-health are common for young carers. Socialisation: Young carers often feel different or isolated from their peers and have limited opportunities for socialising. Stable environment: Young carers can experience traumatic life changes such as bereavement, family break-up, losing income and housing, or seeing the effects of an illness or addiction on the person they care for.

Evidence shows that being a young carer can impact on attendance, attainment, personal development and welfare. True or False? 20% of young carers miss school True! Between 13 % of primary school age & 27% secondary age miss school or experience educational difficulties. 40% where children miss care for a relative with a substance misuse problem (Dearden and Becker, 2004). Depending on how much time you have, you could just ask these four suggestion questions (taken from the Education Quiz on your CD), or play the full Education Quiz. Click to reveal the answers If someone wants to find out more about the statistic on this slide you can let them know it comes from this report: Dearden, C and Becker, S (2004), Young Carers in the UK: The 2004 Report, Carers UK

Young carers attainment at GCSE level is the equivalent of 3 grades lower than their peers? False! If left unsupported, young carers can continue to struggle with school and have significantly lower educational attainment at GCSE level – the difference between nine Cs and nine Ds (The Children’s Society, 2013). If someone wants to find out more about this statistic, you can tell them it comes from this report: The Children’s Society (2013) Hidden from view: The experiences of young carers London, The Children’s Society

One in eight young carers are bullied at school because of their caring role? False! One in four young carers responding to a recent survey said they were bullied at school because of their caring role (Carers Trust, 2013). Ofsted’s Common Inspection Framework includes young carers as a group of pupils inspectors will pay particular attention to. If someone wants to find out more about this statistic, it comes from this report: Sempik, J and Becker, S (2013) Young Adult Carers at School: Experiences and Perceptions of Caring and Education (London, Carers Trust).

So why are so many young carers hidden? Lots of reasons, including: Young carers do not realise that they are a carer They don’t want to be any different from their peers so they don’t draw attention to their caring role. They want to keep their identity at school separate from their caring role. It’s not the sort of thing they feel they can discuss with their friends. There has been no opportunity to share their story. They are worried about bullying. They worry that the family will be split up and that they will be taken into care. They want to keep caring a secret and/or are embarrassed. They see no reason to tell their story