Working with young carers
Where a young carer is identified, a referral should be made in every instance to the Barnet MASH who will triage information and ascertain whether a Children and Families Assessment.
Carers and Young Carers Strategy and Action Plan
Background
The latest Census (released in May 2013) revealed that there are 166,363 Young Carers in England (an increase of 20% since the last Census in 2001). In Barnet there are 2,911 children and young people aged 0 – 24 providing unpaid care in Barnet. Approximately 632 of these are known to Barnet’s Young Carer’s Centre, known as Barnet Young Carers and Siblings (BYCAS).
About Young Carers
Definition
The definition of a young carer is taken from Section 96 of the Children and Families Act 2014; “a person under 18 who provides or intends to provide care for another person”. Young carers should not be providing inappropriate levels of caring. Inappropriate caring responsibilities are considered as anything which is likely to have an impact on the child’s health, wellbeing or education, or which can be considered unsuitable in light of the child’s circumstances and may include:
- personal care such as bathing and toileting
- carrying out strenuous physical tasks such as lifting
- administering medication
- maintaining the family budget
- emotional support to the adult.
The Care Act 2014 and the Children and Families Act 2014 together provide a framework to ensure inappropriate caring by young people is prevented or reduced and whole family needs are met. The impact of the new legislation is that for the first time, carers are recognised in the law in the same way as those they care for, and are eligible for assessment and support.
Strengths of being a Young Carer
May include:
- greater sensitivity to others
- stronger family bonds
- early maturity/living skills.
Challenges of being a Young Carer*
The challenges are:
- school attendance (around 1 in 20 young carers miss school because of their caring responsibilities)
- bullying and/or social isolation
- low self-esteem
- feelings of guilt, anxiety, and/or anger
- lower educational attainment (the equivalent to 9 grades lower overall than their peers- the difference between 9 Bs and 9 Cs)
- more likely than the national average to not be in education, employment or training (NEET) between the ages of 16-19yrs
- 1.5 times more likely to have a disability, long-term illness or special educational need
Statistics taken from *‘Hidden from view’- Children’s Society Research paper, 2013.