A young carer is normally someone aged 18 or under who helps look after a relative who has a condition, such as a disability, illness, mental health condition or a drug or alcohol problem.  Most young carers look after one of their parents or care for a brother or sister.  They do extra jobs in and around the home, such as cooking, cleaning or helping someone to get dressed and move around.

Spending a lot of time caring for someone can impact on how well a young carer does at school or limit their opportunities to do the same things as other children or young people.  Guildford Young Carers aims to support young people who find life replaced by caring for a relation within the family unit that causes a negative outcome and lost time and who are unable to access help.

We will award grants to support young carers in the Borough of Guildford.   Grants will support young carers by providing services or equipment that will help them with their educational, emotional and social needs, but will not cover duties that are statutory responsibility of local authorities.

Examples of eligible costs that may qualify for grant support include:

• additional non-statutory support in school or college
• extra tuition or educational support outside school or college
• IT or other equipment to support educational needs
• school trips, outings or residential activities
• courses
• music, sports or play activities or other clubs outside school (including membership fees)
• opportunities to meet other young carers

Guildford Young Carers Fund – Community Foundation for Surrey