Things to Help Me Act

Young carers

Imagine being responsible for taking care of a dependant family member from the age of 12 yrs. Sounds tough ha? Well there are a lot of young people out there doing it!

Submitted 3/21/2006 By anna82a Views 324428 Comments 12 Updated 5/3/2006

Photographer : Daisy Howard

Who and what is a young carer?

Young carers are young people who care for a family member who has an illness, disability and/or an addiction—so they look after their mum, dad, sister, brother, grandparent or family friend. Young carers can come from all socio-economic and cultural backgrounds and geographic locations.

Most young carers assume their caring role between the ages of 12 and 14 years old. This means they take on responsibilities usually carried out by adults, which impact significantly on their life, at times in a negative way.

Did you know?

There are 181,000 carers under 18 in Australia
There are 388,800 young people under 26 years of age in Australia providing care for family members or friends.
10% of all people in Australia aged between 15–25 years are carers
17% of all carers in Australia are under 26 years of age.

Barriers young carers face

Most young carers have problems fitting into the mainstream education system. This is because they often need to take time off school or don’t have time to complete homework and study for exams. Young carers have a high level of responsibility, which sometimes means all work and no play :( This also mean young carers don't have the same opportunities as other young people to hang out with friends on the weekends, play sport, or get a part-time job.

If you’re a carer—look after you too!

Looking after people can make you feel good but it can also get stressful, so to be a good carer, you need to look after you too! Set aside some time and arrange for someone else to do some caring in your place!

Eventually, young carers reach an age where they are not so young. Although it can be hard to move on when its time to get a job or study away from home, it can be done, and there are people who can help.

How I know this?

Manchester Carers Forum, Young carers, http://www.manchestercarersforum.org.uk/youngCarer...

Devon County Council, Young carers, http://www.devon.gov.uk/youngcarers

Moore, T 2005, ‘Young carers and education’, Youth Studies Australia, vol. 24, no.4,

Reachout!, http://www.reachout.com.au

Young Carers NSW, http://www.youngcarersnsw.asn.au

Affected by this issue yourself or know someone who is? Check out our sister site http://www.reachout.com.au/

This work is licenced under an Attribution licence.
© 2008. First published on actnow.com.au

Tell me about creative commons licences

Discuss Now

Post Comment 1 | 2 | 3 |

zerbax16 22-Aug-2010

Hey, I just want to say all these stories that I'm reading is soooooooooo sooooo very inspirational, you guys and girls are truely amazing people. You will be rewarded in heaven greatly for ur greatness, I also wanted to just say that I'm 17 years old and for the last couple of years i've become really interested in the topic of carers and children who are abused and neglected and the things i've read. . . .are truely, undescribable, I've been having trouble actually finding places in my region, i'm from the country, where I can volunteer. Honestly, if I could I would really take all your problems you guys and do it all myself so that you can have a break. I really really really really want to help anybody and everybody who needs help but I'm not sure how to go about it. If I could help you amazing people I would.

emmiee :) 24-Feb-2010

its about time more people knew about young carers!!!

VibewirePROJECTeye 15-Jul-2008

If you have an opinion or viewpoint you'd like to share with the rest of the world about WYD '08, visit http://www.projecteye.org .

PROJECTeye, in partnership with SBS, will provide an opportunity for people from diverse religious, regional and cultural backgrounds to be heard worldwide.

Black Jesus, Inquisition, Pilgrims gone AWOL turning up in the gutter, its all on PROJECTeye.org.

Create your own coverage and engage with the rest of the world on the biggest event of 2008.

TanR16 23-Apr-2008

This article really hit home to me because I too am a young carer, not fulltime like I used to be but I still do all I can to help, My Dad had a car accident when I was 14 and as a result sustained a head injury aswell as many other injuries, though the first one I mentioned would have to be the most critical and problematic. Not only did I help to care for my father after he was released from Intensive care and then the rehabilitation clinic but I was the one left caring for my younger siblings who were just 1 and newborn at the time, My elder brother was a massive support but he was the one who had to go to work so we could pay the bills, I was the one at home playing “Mum” to my baby brother and sister which ment that school had to go on hold along with all the other things that I was into and a part of (may sound like a great holiday from school but let me assure you it definitely was not!! Waking to a screaming baby at all hours of the night for months on end can lead you into begging to go to school for just 1 day!!!) . I am now 18 and have since moved away for work while my elder brother continues to care for my father and younger siblings, I do everything I can to help from a distance but sometimes feel as though I have abandoned them for a life of my own. I guess I just wanted to say I can relate with other young carers out there and would love to get in touch with some as it’s always good to know that there are other people out there who know of some of the feelings you have and the struggles you are going through each and every day.
Its good to know that other people who aren’t carers are keen to learn about it too because every bit of understanding and reassurance DOES help!
And one lesson I have learnt through this all that I often have to repeat to myself is; What doesn’t kill you only makes you stronger

Rita 09-Jan-2008

To take on the responsibility as a young carer definitely deserves praise as well as recognition. I don't know anyone who is a carer myself, however I can imagine the hard work and frustration that young carers must face at times. You're family and friends are lucky to have you!

My Recently Visited Pages