Young
Carers
'Lambeth Young Carers has made me feel more confident with other people and I have made new friends.'
Am I a young carer?
A young carer is anyone aged 5 to 21 who helps look after a family member or friend, who has an illness or condition. This might be a physical illness; mental illness; learning disability; or some form of addiction.
A young carer might ‘care’ in all sorts of ways, be it through personal care, help around the home, or by providing emotional support.
No matter how big or small the caring role, we’re here to help.
Friendship
Being a young carer can create barriers to friendship. Perhaps because of less time to socialise or because friends don’t understand what it is like to be a carer. Our groups allow young carers to meet people who understand their circumstances.
Building confidence
We believe that confidence is a skill that comes with practice. It grows with nurture, encouragement and opportunities to try new things - our varied programme of activities does just this, helping young carers build self-reliance and inner-strength.
Recognition
Often, young carers go through their childhood without realising that they're a carer. Many who know they're a carer are fearful to communicate their needs to their school. We create the conditions for young people to own and make sense of their identity as carers, and we try our best to make sure that their needs are met.
'Going to Lambeth Young Carers makes me confident and happy and I feel more likeable.'
Active
Getting out and about and moving around improves our state of mind, but it can be easy to be inactive in the inner-city. That’s why we take ‘being active’ very seriously, as you’ll learn from our programme of energetic events.
Education
We know that being a young carer can create challenges at school, whether that’s missed homework, low attendance or a lack of understanding from teachers. We work with schools to make sure that the right support is in place.
Learning new skills
Let’s face it: young carers are young, and sometimes it’s too early to think about jobs and careers. But it’s never too early to think about hobbies and passions. Our varied activities help young carers learn what engages them, and to develop essential skills along the way.
Whole family approach
Sometimes, you can’t improve the health and happiness of a young carer without improving that of the whole family. That’s why we take a ‘whole family approach’. If a family is struggling to get something they need, we can help them to get it.
A weekly homework club at 336 Brixton Road for 11 - 16 year olds
Contact for more information
There are lots of different ways that we can help...
Tailored support
When a young carer joins our service, we always meet them and their family to understand how we can help. Help might involve linking families with other services, speaking to a young carer’s school or simply providing a listening ear.
First Aid Training
Join a young carers first aid course delivered by British Red Cross.
Information
There is a lot of support on offer in Lambeth, but these things can be difficult to find. We’re here to fill those gaps. We provide information on training courses, local services and other opportunities within the borough.
Peer Support Group (12yrs+)
We run a monthly group for young carers. It’s a non-judgemental space for young carers to talk, play games and feed into the planning of activities. Most importantly, it’s a space for them to make their own!
School holiday activities
We run a range of fun, interesting and educational activities every school holiday. Check out the young carers gallery. We love hearing what our young carers want to do – we’ll try to make it work!
Free legal clinic
Access free legal advice about Power of Attorney and Court of Protection from Anthony Gold solicitors at our monthly legal clinic.
