Schools ‘failing young carers’, claims Barnardo’s

Children’s charity Barnardo’s has claimed schools are failing young people who care for sick or disabled family members. The charity said research it commissioned found that 40 per cent of teachers were “not confident” they would be able to identify a young carer in their class. Meanwhile, more than a third (34 per cent) of teachers surveyed thought there were young carers at their school who were not sufficiently supported and 29 per cent said they didn’t think their school had any particular ways of supporting young carers. Under the Care Act 2014 and the Children and Families Act 2014, teachers and other professionals working with children have a statutory duty to identify young carers and refer them to the local authority to be assessed for support. Read more.