Young Carers Being Bullied

A quarter of young adult carers are bullied because of their role, according to research.

A study by the Carer's Trust also found over two thirds of carers aged 8-16 surveyed said they were picked on.

Five thousand youngsters in Fife care for a family member - that's around one in ten, or three per class.

Thea Stein, Chief Executive of Carers Trust said: "We know from talking to carers that caring does affect physical and mental health. It is bad enough to hear this from adult carers but to hear this from children and young people is truly shocking."

She continued: "Returning to study after the summer break can be daunting for many young people but imagine being a young carer or a young adult carer who not only has to get themselves ready for school, often having been woken through the night, but also has to get the person that they care for, and possibly other family members ready, for the day ahead. And then having finally reached school, to know that it's not a safe place to be because of the bullying.

"Many young carers tell us that they are exhausted even before they get to school or college. This means that they are tired and less likely to concentrate on school work. They often struggle with finding the time to do homework too and we know that YACs between 16 and 18 years old are twice as likely to not be in education, employment or training. And of course, our report shows that many of them are bullied, making life as a young carer very very difficult."

Nina Collins is a development worker with Fife Young Carers: