Teenage carers in Scotland will be the first in the UK to be given financial support thanks to a new Scottish Government grant. A new benefit will open for applications on Monday, with the Scottish Government investing £600,000 to support almost 2,000 young carers in 2019/20.
The Young Carer Grant will be available for 16, 17 and 18 year olds who spend an average of 16 hours caring for someone who receives a disability benefit. Continue reading New benefit for young carers launches next week
Young carers in Scotland aged 16 to 18 could benefit from a new £300 social security payment.
The Young Carer Grant is the first of its kind in the UK. It will be available to 16, 17 and 18 year olds who help care for someone in receipt of a certain type of disability benefit. The payment will be introduced this autumn.
Following feedback from young carers, eligiblity is being widened to include all 18-year-olds, not just those in education.
In a further another extension of the policy, young carers will now also be able to combine the hours they spend caring for more than one eligible person in order to reach the 16 hours a week requirement.
Young carers will also be able to take respite weeks without this impacting upon their application.
Social Security Secretary Shirley-Anne Somerville said: “We are using our new social security powers to recognise the extraordinary contribution young carers make to the lives of those they care for.
“This is the first time young carers aged 16 to 18 will be given a cash benefit to spend as they choose. We will be making these payments at what could be a pivotal stage in their lives – when they may be finishing school, looking for employment or starting further education or training.
“Young carers make an invaluable contribution to society but many have difficulty participating in the normal activities their peers can enjoy. The Young Carer Grant will help ensure they are treated with the dignity, fairness and respect they deserve.”
The Scottish Government is investing £600,000 to support nearly 2000 young carers in 2019/20.
The Young Carer Grant will open for applications in autumn this year and applications can be made online, over the phone or by post.
Young carers aged 11-18 are to benefit from a new nationwide Young Scot package of discounts and opportunities. Continue reading Extra support for young carers
Young Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic children who care for ill or disabled relatives are more likely than other young carers to be isolated from support services, a new report by Barnardo’s has revealed.
Continue reading Young BAME carers struggle to get right support, Barnardo’s reveals
Marking Young Carers Awareness Day today, Scottish Government Ministers have announced additional support and engagement activities. Continue reading Ministers announce additional support on Young Carers Awareness Day
The name will change but the project’s focus remains the same: supporting local carers young and old, North West Carers Centre annual general meeting decided last month. Members voted unanimously for a name change to open up more funding opportunities for the Prentice Centre-based project, which will become Capital Carers Ltd. in April. Continue reading New Year, new name for North West Carers
A new Young Carer Grant – worth £300 a year – will be part of a new package of support for young carers, First Minister Nicola Sturgeon announced today on a visit to the Edinburgh Young Carers Project at Norton Park yesterday. The announcement has been welcomed by the Scottish Greens, who first put forward the idea. Continue reading First Minister announces more support for young carers
The Scottish Government and Young Scot have joined forces to raise awareness of the support young adult carers may be entitled to. Continue reading Young adult carers encouraged to claim what’s theirs
YOUNG CARERS ROCK!
Young Carers Rock! Is a 14+ benefit gig to celebrate young carers in the city and raise awareness of the challenges they face. Edinburgh bands Ayakara and Whitehill Grove with The Snuts from West Lothian head the line-up at the Mash House, 37 Guthrie Street next Thursday (15 June), from 7pm until 10pm. Continue reading Benefit gig to support young carers
GREENS URGE FM TO PRESS AHEAD WITH YOUNG CARERS ALLOWANCE
A new study published by the Children and Young Peoples Commissioner explores the mental health and wellbeing of young carers in Scotland— and reveals that more than one in four are doing the caring on their own.
Continue reading Just coping: one in four young carers do the caring alone
