Release Date:  13-May-2008

 Funding boost to help young carers in Bristol

Bristol City Council has secured funding and the support of a development worker from "Include" to improve training for people working with young people caring for an adult at home.  "Include" is a project by the Children's Society and the Princess Royal Trust for carers to develop a protocol and improve multi-agency working to help young carers.

Around 836 young people are estimated to be caring for an adult in the city and the council is also appealing for more young people to come forward to secure help at home.

A conference this Thursday (15th May) will look at how all the agencies in the city can improve the way they share information to help young carers and launch a new film "Have their Say" from the National Young Carers Forum.

Young carers typically takes on caring responsibilities for a family member, undertaking daily household tasks appropriate for an adult such as shopping, cooking, cleaning and personal hygiene, while trying to keep their family together alongside full-time education.  To protect themselves a young carer will often choose to keep his or her role secret which can lead to bullying and conflict with the demands of school life.

Executive Member for Children and Young People Cllr Derek Pickup said: "Caring for an adult at home can be an isolating experience - even more so if you are still at school and don't know where to turn for help. While I admire the dedication of Bristol's young carers it is vital that we develop a multi-agency approach to ensure that they get all the support they need.  We can already demonstrate successes through respite breaks, schooling or transport but there is plenty of scope to do more. I'm delighted that Bristol is the only authority in the South West to receive extra funding for training and I would urge for more young carers to come forward for help."

Bristol City Council aims to work with other agencies to ensure that young carers receive support without threatening the break up of their family.   According the the 2001 Census 166 children under the age of 11 were young carers - the numbers today could be much higher.

Keith Sinclair, Chief Executive of The Princess Royal Trust for Carers said: "This conference is an excellent opportunity to bring professionals from all agencies, involved in working with young carers, together and to raise awareness of Young Carers support needs. One of the most frustrating aspects of our work, when taking a 'whole family approach', is getting all the relevant agencies involved, to communicate with each other. Hopefully one of the outcomes of the day will be an improved, more joined up approach to working and that in the future more resources will be made available to increase the levels of support organisations, such as ours provides."

Bristol Young Carers Voice representative Nathalie, aged 15, said: "Over the years the Princess Royal Trust Young Carers service has helped raise my confidence and given me a lot of support.  If I have any
worries I know someone is at the end of the phone and this is very reassuring to me".

Author:  Julia Walton

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