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How many young carers are there?

• There are about 700,000 young carers in the UK. 
• That’s about one in 12 secondary aged pupils.
• There are likely to be young carers in every school and college.

What might a young carer do?

• Practical tasks, such as cooking, housework and shopping.
• Physical care, such as helping someone out of bed. 
• Emotional support, such as talking to someone who is distressed.
• Personal care, such as helping someone dress.
• Managing the family budget and collecting prescriptions.
• Helping to give medicine. 
• Helping someone communicate.
• Looking after brothers and sisters.

Being a young carer can have a big impact on the things that are important to growing up

• It can affect a young person’s health, social life and self-confidence.
• Many young carers struggle to juggle their education and caring which can cause pressure and stress.
• In a survey, 39% said that nobody in their school was aware of their caring role.
• 26% have been bullied at school because of their caring role.
• 1 in 20 miss school because of their caring role.

But young people can learn lots of useful skills by being a young carer.

Young carer facts

• The average age of a young carer is 12.
• Young carers are children and young people under 18 who provide regular and on-going care and emotional support to a family member who is physically or mentally ill, disabled or misuses substances.
• The 2001 census identified 175,000 young carers in the UK, with 13,000 caring for more than 50 hours per week. The 2011 census identified 178,000 young carers in England and Wales alone; an 83% increase in the number of young carers aged 5 to 7 years and a 55% increase in the number of children caring who are aged 8 to 9 years. When figures from the Northern Ireland and Scottish census are taken into account, the total number of young carers in the UK total at least 195,000.