Young Carers

At St Edmund’s, we have a Young Carers Club who meet once a half term.The children really appreciate knowing that they are not on their own and that some of their school friends have similar experiences and we provide time and space for Young Carers to have fun and ask any questions they may have.

A young carer is someone 'under the age of 18 who helps look after someone in their family who is ill, has a disability, has a mental health condition or misuses drugs or alcohol'. They may care for a family member such as parent, brother/sister or grandparent. Young Carers may help the person they care for in a variety of different ways above and beyond their peers.  Sibling Young Carers often provide much needed support and emotional regulation.

It is important to recognise all the love, help and support they give to others and the school.  At the end of last year, Mrs Gould met with each of the Young Carers to see, ‘what had worked well’ and what they ‘needed more help with’. 

Some of the feedback the children gave was as follows:

• It’s hard doing homework at home because there isn’t space at home and my mum and dad have to look after my little brother because he has Autism.
• I like having Young Carers club because it’s nice to talk about what is worrying me.
• I like talking about my feelings with people who understand.
• Young Carers Club is my ‘safe space’.
• It gives me space and time to ask questions – sometimes not everyone understands what it is like to have a brother or sister with special needs.
• I like having Young Carers club because it’s nice to talk about what is worrying me.
• It’s nice having fun at Young Carers club – sometimes it is difficult at home as I need to help mum/dad because they are not well.

If you would like your child to be invited to our school group, please contact Miss Meldon our Inclusion Lead on t.meldon@st-edmunds.richmond.sch.uk with 'Young Carers' in the title.  Our group is run by Mrs Gould who has previously worked for Richmond Young Carers. 

Richmond Young Carers, for Richmond residents, provide a range of additional support.  This can be accessed via their website - Services for Young Carers - Richmond Carers Centre.  Zoë, our School Link Support Worker, comes into school to provide much valued support in the form of training for staff, school assemblies and meeting with our Young Carers.

For Hounslow residents, we are also pleased to announce that we are in the process of arranging a visit from Brentford Football Club Young Carers Support Worker, who we hope will also become part of our school community in the future.  Please also find additional information about Young Carers services available for Hounslow residents through the Brentford Community Trust via this link:

Young Carers | Brentford FC Community Sports Trust (brentfordfccst.com)