Young carers: unknown and underserved

Darling et al discusses the UK's Children and Families Act 2014, Section 96 which defines a young carer as a person under 18 who provides or intends to provide care for another person. A survey in 2018 asking 925 children in England to outline if they provide care, and to describe the care provided and to whom, reveals the extent of caring by children is much higher than previous estimates. If results of the research reflect the country as a whole, then there are thousands of secondary school children (aged 11 to 16 years) in England caring for an individual at home, and that approximately 7% of young people have a significant caring role in the home for an ill or disabled relative.