Young carers - support and advice
Young carers are children and young people under the age of 18
who provide care to another family member who has an illness,
physical disability, mental health problem, sensory
disability, learning difficulty or disability, or is affected by
drug or alcohol misuse.
The care they provide would normally be done by an adult and, as
a result, this has a big impact on their childhood.
What young carers do
Young carers may do a variety of things for their relative
like:
- Cleaning
- Cooking
- Helping with personal care
- Shopping
- Paying bills
- Cheering someone up
- Checking medication
- Interpreting for the person cared for
Being a young carer can be hard, causing a young person to feel
they do not have enough time for homework, socialising with friends
or doing fun things. They may get tired or frustrated and feel that
nobody listens to them or knows about them.
What the law says about young
carers
Young carers have the same rights as other carers
under the NHS and Community Care Act 1990. They can also be
considered 'children in need' under the Children's Act 1989
depending on whether or not the local authority thinks the
child's caring role prevents them achieving or maintaining a
reasonable standard of social opportunities and achieving full
school attendance.
Support for young carers
Rochdale Young Carers Service is a support service for
5 to 18 year olds who are caring for or helping to care for a
parent or relative with an illness or disability and their
families.
The service operates throughout the Rochdale borough including
Middleton and Heywood.
The Rochdale Young Carers Service can:
- Visit families at home to discuss their situation
- Carry out a young carers assessment to help us work out
together what support is needed
- Help with any problems at school
- Give information
- Help you get in touch with services
- Advocate on behalf of the young carer and their family
- Provide confidential counselling
- Provide group and individual work with children
- Provide activity sessions with young people to give them a
break and have fun.
Young carers, relatives of young carers and professionals
working with young carers can all contact the Rochdale Young Carers
Service to ask for support.