Student Carers: Time to be Heard in Higher Education in ...€¦ · Scottish Youth Parliament (SYP)...

www.carers.org www.youngercarersmatter.org www.youngcarers.net

http://professionals.carers.org www.carershub.org© Carers Trust

Student Carers:

Time to be Heard

in Higher Education

in Scotland

Social Mobility and Widening Access to Higher Education in Scotland:

Policy, Practice and Research Conference

University of Strathclyde

Friday 15 May 2015



Florence Burke

Director for Scotland

Paul Traynor

Young Adult Carers

Policy and Campaigns Officer

Carers Trust Scotland staff



Student carers

Ailsa Tweedie



Describing carers:“A carer is anyone who

cares, unpaid, for a

friend or family member

who due to illness,

disability, a mental health

problem or an addiction

cannot cope without their

support.”



About Carers Trust Carers Trust is a major new charity for, with and about carers.

We work to improve support, services and recognition for

anyone living with the challenges of caring, unpaid, for a

family member or friend who is ill, frail, disabled or has mental

health or addiction problems.

We do this with Network Partners – a unique network of 116

independent carers centres, 55 Crossroads Care schemes

and 99 young carers services. Together we are united by a

shared vision for carers – to make sure that quality assured

information, advice and practical support are available to all

carers across the UK.



Our visionA world where the role and contribution of unpaid carers is recognised and they

have access to the quality support and services they need to live their own lives.

Our missionTogether with our Network Partners, we provide support, information, advice and

services for the millions of people caring at home for a family member or friend.

Our Network Partners reach carers of all ages and with a range of responsibilities,

in their local communities. From helping carers to access local services, to making

their views heard by opinion formers and professionals, together we help carers to

connect with everyone and everything that can make a difference to their lives.

With carers’ needs, choices and voices at the heart of everything we do, we strive

to ensure that the enormous contribution they make to society and to those they

care for is fully recognised, appreciated and valued.



It’s Time to be Heard for student carers?The important role that student carers play is often misunderstood; by colleges and universities and by those in Government. Carers Trust’s Time to be Heard campaign initiatives aims to address these issues.

Supporting students with caring responsibilities will increase awareness of this particular group of students and their specific needs. The Co-operative’s partnership with Carers Trust has the potential to achieve real and lasting change: to enhance the self-confidence and skills of young adult and student carers, to enable them to use their voice to become active citizens in their community and advocate for themselves and others, to create lasting change by positively challenging educational institutions and decision makers to take this issue seriously.

© Carers Trust

The aims of the Time to be Heard initiative are:

• To support young adult carers to have the opportunity to

achieve change for themselves, their families and others

• To ensure schools, colleges, universities and employers

enable young adult carers to be heard and to be supported

• To involve 5,000 young adult carers across the UK in active

citizenship and achieving positive change, engaging with

decision makers nationally and in their community.



Recent research on young adult and student carers:

Carers Trust

• Young Adult Carers at College and University (2014)

• Young Adult Carers and Employment (2014)

Scottish Youth Parliament (2014)

• A Costly Youth: The Impact of Caring on Young People in

Scotland (2014)

National Union of Students (2013)

• Learning with care: Experiences of student carers in the UK



Carers Trust - Young Adult Carers at College and

University (2014)

• Student carers in further or higher education showed that on average they provided a ‘very high’ level of care

• 39% rated their physical health as either ‘just ok’ or ‘poor’; and 45% reported having mental health problems

• 79% were enjoying college or university, but over half (56%) were experiencing difficulties because of their caring role

• 16% were concerned that they might have to drop out of college or university

• Those who reported that they found college or university difficult had significantly higher caring responsibilities

• 75% of respondents informed college or university staff of their caring role



Cont.

• 45% said there was no one who recognised them as a carer and

helped them. Of those who did not inform college or university

staff, the main reason for not doing so was because they felt that

there was “no point”

• The majority of respondents (62%) had not had a formal

assessment of their needs

• Almost a third (30%) believed they had not received good

services as a carer or adequate support for their families (31%)

• 56% of respondents received a bursary to help with their studies.

Only 3% of respondents received Carer’s Allowance, 12% were

in receipt of some other form of benefit.



Carers Trust - Young Adult Carers and Employment

(2014)

• 49.6% of the sample were unemployed

• Young adult carers who had left school and were not in

education, employment or training (NEET) showed that, on

average, they provided a ‘very high’ level of care

• 45% reported that their own physical health was ‘just ok’ or

‘poor’, and over half (51%) reported having a mental health

problem

• 54% felt that they would have got better grades if it was not for

their caring role



Cont.

• 87% felt that they had not received good careers advice and

that the advice did not take into account their caring role

• Of the respondents who had been to college or university,

29% had dropped out because of their caring role. This is

four times greater than the national average for degree

courses

• Only a small proportion of the sample 8% were in receipt of

any benefits.



Scottish Youth Parliament (SYP) - A Costly Youth: The

Impact of Caring on Young People in Scotland (2014)

• 74% of the participants said that they experience stress or worry due to their financial situation

• Of those participants who indicated that they experience stress or worry 41% said affording basic needs was their greatest source of concern, and 32% said affording further or higher education caused the most concern

• Of those participants currently in further and higher education 80% said they have considered dropping out of their course, 75% said they are unsure if they should stay in college or university, and 80% said it affected their ability to study enough.



National Union of Students (2013) - Learning with care:

Experiences of student carers in the UK

• The majority of student carers are women

• Only 36% of student carers felt able to balance commitments such as work, study, and family/relationships, compared to 53% of students without caring responsibilities

• Just under half felt that their academic performance or attainment had been negatively affected by their caring responsibilities

• More than half of student carers (56%) had seriously considered leaving their course, compared to 39% of students without caring responsibilities

• Two thirds of student carers (67%) regularly worry about not having enough money to meet their basic living expenses



Cont.

• Three in five of student carers are combining paid work, caring, and studying

• Student carers who were in receipt of Carer’s Allowance did not feel the benefit was adequate, but the fact that full-time students are not eligible for Carer’s Allowance was considered unfair and contributing to their financial hardship

• Student carers were three times as likely to have taken on high-risk debt as students without caring responsibilities

• Many student carers sacrifice their social life in order to study and provide care

• Having an identity outside of caring, gaining life skills and independence, and having a sense of accomplishment were identified as the best parts of being a student carer.



As part of Carers Trust’s Time to be Heard initiatives, the Going Higher

campaigns movement is asking all universities to include young adult

carers when they look at the different groups that may need extra support

to fulfil their potential.

It only takes three simple steps:

•Identify the number of young adult carers attending your university

•Support all young adult carers throughout their education to ensure they

maintain good mental health, complete their course and achieve the best

grades possible

•Report on young adult carers progress to showcase universities'

achievements

Going Higher in Scotland campaign will formally launch in summer 2015

Going Higher - campaign



Time to be Heard – Going Higher across

the UK film

https://youtu.be/hmCNCYhcUCo

https://youtu.be/hmCNCYhcUCo



Experiences from student carers

Ailsa Tweedie



Exercise:

What more can be done to better

support student carers to access and

reach their potential in higher

education in Scotland?

www.carers.org www.youngercarersmatter.org

www.youngcarers.net

http://professionals.carers.org www.carershub.org

Carers Trust is a registered charity in England and Wales (1145181) and in

Scotland (SC042870). Registered as a company limited by guarantee in England

and Wales No. 7697170. Registered office: 32–36 Loman Street, London SE1 0EH.

© Carers Trust

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Student Carers: Time to be Heard in Higher Education in ...€¦ · Scottish Youth Parliament (SYP)...

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