Young Adult Carers 16-25

Sutton Young Carers Service supports Young People with caring role from age 8 to 18.  However, if you are caring for a family member with a mental illness, we can support you up to 25 years of age through our AYCES Project. If you are over 18 years of age and are caring for someone with a non-mental health illness or disability, you can register with our Adult Service to access a range of support.

 

The facts:   

We provide a range of services to Young Carers aged 18 and under. Due to Covid-19, we are running out services remotely, please email the Young Carers Team, youngcarers@suttoncarerscentre.org  to find out the latest information.

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Young Adult Carers have a right to an assessment of their needs:

Trying to create a work/life balance as a Young Adult Carer can sometimes seem like an impossible task and many tell us that they will often give up their dreams of a career in order to care of their family member.  With the right support in place, you may not have to make such a difficult decision and be able to find the balance between caring and fulfilling your dreams.

If you are in that situation, talk to us and we can help you to find the balance or arrange for a Carers Assessment

 

Young Adult Carers Education

Good News!  From 2018 University and Colleges Admissions Service (UCAS) will include a tick box in their application form allowing Young People to identify themselves as a Young Carer. In the meantime, UCAS has created a dedicated webpage for Young Adult Carers wishing to go to university.  They provide links to funding your university placement through means other than student loans which include scholarships or hardship loans. They also show examples of Young Adult Carers who have managed to find a way of balancing their caring role with their studies at university. Check it out here:

https://www.ucas.com/ucas/undergraduate/finance-and-support/individual-needs/young-adult-carers

 

Colleges also offer Discretionary Funds to 16-19 year olds.  They set their own criteria and target students who need the most help to stay in education.  This is usually based on criteria such as:

·       your family’s income

·       if your parents get benefits

·       if you currently receive free school meals or have had them in the past.

 

Speak to your college or contact us if you would like support to do this.

 

Professionals can access Carers Trust guidance on supporting Young Adult Carers through education: https://carers.org/resources/all-resources/5-supporting-further-education-students-with-caring-responsibilities

 

Young Adult Carers Employment:

Over half of unpaid carers who are not working say that they want to be work.  The handbook, ‘Getting into Work: a Guide for Young Adult Carers in England’ gives young adult carers advice and information on how to overcome the difficulties they may face in finding and staying in employment. It offers guidance on how to find a job, the application process and how to balance work with a caring role.  https://carers.org/getting-work-guide-young-adult-carers-england

 

Young Carers Education

Sutton Young Carers Service is committed to working in partnership with schools to reduce the impact of caring on Young Carers education and experience of school life. 

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Did you know?

• 1 in 12 Young People of secondary school age have a caring role

• 22% of young carers suffer significant educational disadvantage, including bullying, attendance problems or inability to complete homework/coursework

• Young carers have significantly lower educational attainment at GCSE level; the equivalent to nine grades lower overall than their peers

 

What Young Carers told us and what we did:

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Young Carers said that they wanted more direct support in school.

We created a weekly drop in for Young Carers in secondary school for them to access support in their lunch hour (in addition to one to one support sessions).  Young Carers attending tell us it has made a significant difference to their wellbeing and attainment at school.  

Young Carers said that they wanted increased awareness of their caring role amongst their teachers:

We provided targeted training to teachers and assisted Senior Staff to create a protocol for identifying and supporting Young Carers in School.

 

Additionally, talking to schools resulted in Young Carers being able to:

• Keep their phone on in lessons to keep in touch with home when necessary.

• Giving Young Carers extra time to complete their homework work.

• Keeping in touch with Young Carers regarding the impact of their caring role and adapting the support according to pressures at home.

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Young Carers said they wished school had identified them earlier as Young Carers.

We worked with Senior Staff to include screening for Young Carers on the schools admissions application form.

We provide schools with advice, training, information and support to enable them to identify and support Young Carers both at teaching and governance levels. If you are a school and would like to talk to us about how we can support you to support Young Carers please call or email.

If you are a Young Carer and want support in school or would like us to talk to your school to help them understand your caring responsibilities, please call or email the team on.  We can make a difference!

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Online information for Professionals in Education: 
https://carers.org/young-carers-schools

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Young Carers & Young Adult Carers Assessments

The law says that Young People with caring responsibilities have a right to be supported and get the help that they need in order to have a life outside of their caring role and reduce any impact of caring on their life.  To access support as outlined in legislation, you ask the Local Authority (London Borough of Sutton, or 'the Council') for an appointment for a Young Carers Assessment of need. You also can contact us directly and we can discuss with you the support services we have on offer, as well. 

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There are different types of support and help available to Young Adult Carers when they turn 18. As a Young Adult Carer you have a right to a Transition Assessment so that children’s and adults services can support you to decide what help you need.  There is no set age for a Transition Assessment but it should happen before you reach 18.

https://carers.org/know-your-rights-support-young-carers-and-young-adult-carers-england 

 

Professionals

Young Carers Referrals, Assessments & Protocol 

London Borough of Sutton operates a Young Carers Assessment Protocol in response to the introduction of the Carers Act 2014 and the Children and Families Act 2014.  Any child identified as a Young Carer should be referred to the Local Authority in the first instance for a statutory Young Carers Assessment.  This can be done alongside a referral to our service as well. Please contact us to discuss further if you have a Young Carer or family that does not wish to have a statutory Young Carers Assessment but may be in need. 

 

Young Carer Awareness Training

If your team has not yet received training on identifying and supporting Young Carers please email or call to see how we can provide training tailored to the needs of your organisation.

 

Schools, Colleges and Universities

We can assist you to include Young Carers in your policies and protocols.  We deliver assemblies and have stalls at educational events.  We offer training to staff and governors. We can discuss setting up Young Carer Peer Support or Kidstime whole family support in your school.

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http://kidstimefoundation.org/young-people-families/parents-families/

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Carers Trust guidance on supporting Young Adult Carers through education: 

 

https://professionals.carers.org/sites/default/files/university_toolkit_master_webversion_final.pdf

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