'Young carers like me need more recognition'

A teenager who looks after his mum and sister said he would like to see more recognition and understanding of the roles of young carers.

There are approximately one million young carers aged 17 or under in the UK, according to charity Action for Children.

But one of them, 15-year-old Robbie from Newcastle, said he felt even if people "acknowledge that children have caring roles", their roles were not properly understood.

"I feel like people may hear the word carer and think of somebody looking after a older person in a care home, but it's so much more than that," he said.

The teenager was referred to charity Newcastle Carers, which supports unpaid carers of all ages, during lockdown and meets other young carers through the weekly sessions and residential trips it provides.

"It's amazing, so many of my friends just don't understand being a carer, but my friends in this group do," Robbie said.

"I can talk about my experiences and the level of maturity that the other carers have."

He has called for more understanding and recognition about the role and responsibility of young carers.

He said: "Being a young carer is something not addressed enough, in my opinion.

"Even if people do acknowledge that children have caring roles, it's not properly seen with that name of carer."

Sammi, 17, also from Newcastle, attends the charity's events too and said caring for a family member was "something that you do unconditionally, but to other people, it will look like a lot of work".

He encouraged other carers to seek out support and advice as he said it had opened many opportunities for him when he needed it most.

He said: "Any time I need to speak to them, they're always there.

"It's helpful for your life, meeting new people and learning new things in this role has really helped me."

Newcastle Carers' marketing and fundraising manager Lisa Mollett said some young people struggled to identify with the term "young carers" and saw their role as just part of everyday life.

She said: "For some young carers particularly, when they get referred to our charity, they struggle to identify themselves as a young carer.

"Self-identification can come across as quite difficult for them, we're here to show them they aren't alone."

She said children being late for school or taking on responsibilities they would not usually could be potential indicators of them being carers.

"We all have a responsibility in society to look after young carers, and they need to be supported," Mollett said.

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