Young Carers in School Award

Posted at 2:30 pm on 15th January, 2025

Wellacre Achieves Prestigious Award

 

We are proud to announce that Wellacre has been successful in achieving the prestigious Young Carers in School Award for its work supporting young carers with their education. 

 

Young carers are children under 18 who are responsible for the care of a family member with who, due to illness, disability or mental health condition, cannot cope without their support.

 

At Wellacre, all staff are made aware of identified young carers within school. Mrs Birney (Inclusion Manager) and the Inclusion Team act as a source of advice and support for Young Carers and staff and will liaise with other agencies and the family.

 

Strategies we have in place to help young carers include; a commitment to listen to their perspective, provide drop-in sessions for our carers to support their wellbeing, provide or refer for mentoring, support with school work and partnership working with Trafford Young Carers. 

 

Mrs Birney, Inclusion Manager was delighted to hear the work with Young Carers had been recognised with this award, saying, ‘’I am delighted that we have been awarded the Young Carers Award. We are 1 of only 2 schools within Trafford, Salford and Manchester to achieve this. I feel incredibly proud to support the young carers at Wellacre. I want to continue to raise the awareness of young carers at Wellacre, as I believe there are likely lots more students in caring roles that I am not aware of. I want to ensure these students have access to the support that they may need. If you feel your son may be a young carer please get in touch with myself or your son’s Head of House.”

 

 

Principal Mrs Sharrock commented: “Young Carers are statistically unrepresented in school populations, yet they are in need of additional support. We are really proud that all of the good work we do has been recognised and we will continue to raise the profile of Young Carers in our school community.’’

 

Research by Carers Trust shows 40% of young carers say they do not get enough support to balance education and caring. Separate research by The Children’s Society shows young carers get an average of one grade lower in GCSE subjects than their peers and they often also have lower levels of self-confidence and mental wellbeing. 

 

Statutory guidance makes clear that all school staff should be particularly alert to the potential need for early help for young carers. The Young Carers in School programme is a way of helping schools address this. 

 

Vicky Morgan, Carers Trust’s Head of Young Carers at Young Adult Carers, said: 

“We’re delighted to present the Young Carers in Schools award to Wellacre Academy. Figures show there are two young carers in every classroom but balancing learning with looking after family members can be tough without help. By identifying young carers and putting support in place, schools and teachers can make a huge difference to their wellbeing and education. That’s why the brilliant work done by staff at Wellacre is so vital and why this award is so richly deserved.”