Young carers in early childhood - creating threads of hope through lived experience.
by Carly Ellicott
Who are young carers?
Young carers play a vital role in society, bearing responsibility, and emotional load for loved ones, with often detrimental consequences for their own mental health and wellbeing (Aldridge & Becker, 1996).
Recent research concerned with young carers has largely focused on children and young people in latter childhood, adolescence, and young adulthood (Barbella et al., 2022; Hanson et al., 2023; James., 2017; Leu et al., 2022; Saragosa et al., 2022). Providing valuable insight into the experiences of some groups of young carers, the field has not yet fully acknowledged the importance of early identification and assessment for those taking on caring roles specifically in early childhood.
Young carers are defined as ‘children and young persons under 18 who provide or intend to provide care, assistance or support to another family member’ Dearden & Becker (2000: 378). A child or young person can become a young carer at any time, with no lower age limit within legislation for assessment of need (The Care Act 2014; Children and Families Act 2014; Health and Care Act 2022). Mindful that caring is often assumed before a formal diagnosis, conditions are classified as illness, disability, mental health concerns, addiction, or inability to cope without support (Carers Trust, 2023). A caring role may involve duties relating to physical care, practical tasks, and in many cases emotional support (NHS, 2023).
Why focus on early childhood?
Young carers in early childhood have been underrepresented explicitly in empirical research (Ellicott & Woodworth, 2023), yet their stories have been hidden in plain sight. A recent report stresses that 3000 young carers aged between 5 and 9 years are spending at least 50 hrs per week taking care of a loved one in the United Kingdom (Carers Trust, 2023).
Drawing upon my background as an early year’s professional, whilst managing a young carers county wide service, I was struck by the marginalisation faced by our youngest carers and their families, both in policy and practice. I conducted a small-scale research project whilst undertaking an (MA) Early Childhood & Education (Integrated Working with Families and Children) with Pengreen Research Base, Corby, UK. The findings from the project highlighted the following themes: lack of support and awareness from vital services, including health and education, failure to recognise young carers in early childhood, risks of sibling violence, and resilience and protective factors. As a result, barriers are created which prevent young carers in early childhood accessing statutory assessment and subsequent support.
The findings correlate with the shocking conclusions of the Carers Trust (2023) report which reveal it may take 10 years before a young carer has been identified, with an average of three years from the point at which caring begins to being identified.
Recognising the inconsistencies and variables in both acquisition of a caring role and support available to manage the impact of that role effectively, highlighted for me the need for better recognition and identification as early as possible.
So, what next?
This led to my current research as a PhD student within the school of Psychology, University of Plymouth, UK. The Young Carer Early Childhood project aims to challenge existing narrative surrounding young carers. Drawing upon storytelling as a paradigm of enquiry, this multimodal research project (Kara, 2020) will provide a polyvocal (Samaras & Pithouse-Morgan, 2020) investigation of young carers in Early Childhood. Multimodal narratives providing a rich tapestry of experience from which policy makers and interprofessional working practices can draw from, informing service design and delivery.
I will be presenting my MA research and progress to date, at the forthcoming BECERA conference to engage peers within the sector to broaden support within the young carers community. My aim is to help ensure young carers of all ages are represented in the future.
Laying foundations
The early years workforce provides key infrastructure for young carers in early childhood. My presentation will serve as an invitation to the sector to improve the way in which young carers are identified, understood, and represented. The Young Carers Early Childhood project asks the sector to join the conversation and advocate for the needs of young carers and their families, creating seeds of change for the futures of our youngest carers. I look forward to sharing my research and creating threads of hope through the lived experience of young carers, their families, and the community of services which supports them. #youngcarersearlychildhood
References
Aldridge, J., & Becker, S. (1996). Disability rights and the denial of young carers: The dangers of zero-sum arguments. Critical social policy, 16(48), 55-76.
Barbabella, F., Magnusson, L., Boccaletti, L., Casu, G., Hlebec, V., Bolko, I., ... & Hanson, E. (2023). Recruitment of adolescent young carers to a psychosocial support intervention study in six European countries: lessons learned from the ME-WE project. International journal of environmental research and public health, 20(6), 5074.
Carers Trust. (2023). Inquiry into the life opportunities of young carers and adult young carers. Carers Trust: England.
Dearden, C. and Becker, S. (2000) Growing up caring: Vulnerability and Transition to Adulthood – Young Carers’ Experiences. York: Joseph Rowntree Foundation
Ellicott, C. & Woodsworth, A. (2023) Young Carers in the UK, unpublished Routledge International Handbook of Social: London (release March, 2024)
Hanson, E., Barbabella, F., Magnusson, L., Brolin, R., Svensson, M., Yghemonos, S., ... & Becker, S. (2022). Research and innovation for and with adolescent young carers to influence policy and practice—the European Union funded “ME-WE” project. International journal of environmental research and public health, 19(16), 9932.
James, E. (2017). Still Hidden Still Ignored. Who cares for young carers? Online:www.barnardos.org.uk. Accessed: 30/11/2021
Kara, H. (2020). Creative Research Methods 2e: A Practical Guide. Policy Press.
Leu, A., Guggiari, E., Phelps, D., Magnusson, L., Nap, H. H., Hoefman, R., ... & Hanson, E. (2022). Cross-national analysis of legislation, policy and service frameworks for adolescent young carers in Europe. Journal of Youth Studies, 25(9), 1215-1235.
Health and Care Act (2022) Health and Care Act 2022 (legislation.gov.uk)
NHS. (2021, March 22) Being a young carer: your rights
The Carer (Recognition and Service) Act (1995). London: The Stationery Office
The Children and Families Act (2014). Part 5. Young Carers and Parent Carers. London: The Stationery Office
Samaras, A. P., & Pithouse-Morgan, K. (2020). Polyvocal self-study in transdisciplinary higher education communities. International handbook of self-study of teaching and teacher education practices, 1291-1322.
Saragosa, M., Frew, M., Hahn-Goldberg, S., Orchanian-Cheff, A., Abrams, H., & Okrainec, K. (2022). The Young Carers’ Journey: A Systematic Review and Meta Ethnography. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, 19(10), 5826.
Carly Ellicott has 25 years’ experience of supporting children, young people and their families through teaching, leadership and management roles within private education, third sector organisations and inspection work on behalf of the Department of Education, UK. Her research interests lie within the fields of psychology, Early Childhood studies and family science. Her PhD focus will provide a voice to young carers in early childhood utilising qualitative methodologies.
#youngcarersearlychildhood
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