Young Adult Carers
As part of our mission to provide support, resources, and a sense of community to all carers, we’ve been working with the Eastern Local Care Partnership and Devon Carers to provide opportunities for young adult carers in the East Devon area.
We define young adult carers as anyone aged between 18 – 25 years old who helps look after someone who couldn’t cope without them, on a full or part time basis.
We aim to raise awareness of young adult carers and the important role they play, while creating opportunities for them to connect through workshops, peer support groups, and other activities. Read on to find out more about our work with young adult carers.
What’s it like to be a young adult carer?
This age group of carers can often be overlooked, so in collaboration with local filmmaker Isaac James (https://www.isaacjamesfilm.co.uk), we produced some short videos to raise awareness of the incredible work and care that young adult carers provide.
Just click play on the video to the right to hear Ed’s story of being a young adult carer, or follow this link to explore our whole collection of videos: Unpaid Carers - YouTube
Join our peer support groups
During this project, we ran workshops to help young adult carers develop skills and explore career opportunities. We also set up peer support groups to give carers the chance to connect with others in similar situations, offering understanding, shared experiences, and a listening ear when needed.
When asked if the groups were helpful, Ed, a young adult carer, said:
“One of the things that held me back from attending carer-related events in the past was being the youngest there. Having workshops and events designed for people my age is really great. The photography workshop at Exeter Library was my first adult workshop - I didn’t know what to expect, but I had a very relaxed experience and I’m glad I went. It was a perfect excuse to get outside, take a break from my caring role, and learn new skills I might not have discovered otherwise.”
We’re always happy to welcome more young adult carers to our support groups. If you’d like to join, please get in touch with Katie at katie@wellmoor.org.uk or call 01647 478378.