At Charlton Primary School, we recognise that some children help to care for family members at home. We are committed to supporting young carers so they can thrive in school.

 

A young carer is a child who helps look after someone at home who has an illness, disability, mental health difficulty or addiction. A young carer may take on additional responsibilities to those that are typical of their age and development. A young carer might be providing the main care or share responsibilities with another family member, and the tasks that they might carry out may include the following:

• Practical tasks (cooking, cleaning, shopping)
• Personal care (washing, dressing, mobility support)
• Emotional support
• Looking after siblings

We know that young carers may sometimes feel tired, worried or distracted in school, and we recognise that this may impact their attendance, wellbeing, learning and social development in a variety of different ways. We work sensitively with families to understand each child’s situation, and provide support and reasonable adjustments where possible.

 

What can you expect from us?

At Charlton, we have a designated young carers lead, Mrs Campbell, who works closely with other Young Carer Leads from across the Cambrian Learning Trust.

 

We aim to provide our children with caring responsibilities support that suits their individual needs. This may include the following:

• Someone to talk to privately
• Flexible homework deadlines
• Help with attendance or punctuality
• Support for parents with mobility or sensory needs
• Access to Be Free Young Carers

If you think your child may be a young carer, please speak to Mrs Campbell or any member of our safeguarding team. You can also email the school office and ask for a confidential conversation. We treat all information sensitively and confidentially. Sharing your child’s caring role helps us put the right support in place.