16th of March is Young Carers Action Day
As we move closer to the day, we thought we’d share some information about the campaign, what’s new this year and how to get involved - whether you’re a Honeypot supporter, someone who works with young carers, or you’re a young carer yourself.
What is Young Carers Action Day (YCAD)?
Young Carers Action Day is an annual event, organised by the Carers Trust.
It has taken place since 2015 to raise awareness of young carers and the incredible contribution they make to their families and local communities. Over the years, this has led to some great successes, using media and social media to really shine a spotlight on young carers.
Until now, YCAD stood for Young Carers Awareness Day. But as the campaign got bigger each year, the Carers Trust realised there were some things they could do to make the day even better. And based on the feedback of many young carers, they made some changes.
What’s new about YCAD this year?
One of the things young carers keep saying is that what they want is support, not sympathy. It’s great to raise public awareness of young carers and what they do. But we need to do more than just encourage public sympathy for young carers and everything they have to do at home. We need to use the day to get people to take action to support young carers. And that’s why from 2021 onwards, they’ve changed the name to Young Carers Action Day.
What is the theme for YCAD 2021?
Many young carers told The Carers Trust that they wanted the day to be about their futures, highlighting the skills they have developed through being a carer – like resilience, time-management and empathy.
These are key skills, not just for young people moving into higher education - but also for those looking to enter the workplace. What’s more, they are skills highly sought after by employers.
That’s why YCAD 2021 will be all about young carers’ futures, with the official theme being “Protect Young Carers’ Futures”.
What we are calling for during YCAD 2021?
YCAD 2021 must be about action and delivering change for young/adult carers.
The Carers Trust is a campaigning organisation, who will develop policy briefings calling decision-makers in the UK to develop new national Action plans for young/young adult carers – addressing education, employability, health and wellbeing. Their aim is to raise awareness that young carers have amazing skills and that governments need to do more to make those count.
At Honeypot, we work directly together with young carers aged 5-12 and their families across the UK. What makes us unique is that we are the only charity in the UK that consistently supports young carers over many years to help them build the confidence they need to succeed in life. We strongly believe in the importance of early intervention. That’s why we designed a service model that enables us to address the social, emotional and educational needs of the most vulnerable children, starting from as young as 5 years old. So when it comes to protecting young carer’s futures, that’s exactly what we do, day in and day out.
How do I get involved?
Follow us on social media and share our posts to help us raise awareness of YCAD and the incredible work young carers do. Contact us if you want to share your own story or want to collaborate with us as an employer, school or youth centre. If you want to make a donation to our Wrap-Round service and help us reach even more children, please follow this link.
We look forward to a vibrant and impactful YCAD 2021, giving young carers a voice and helping protect their futures.