Young Carers

Supporting Young Carers at Cloughside College

At Cloughside College, we recognise the incredible strength and resilience of our students who take on caring responsibilities at home. These young carers may provide practical, emotional or physical support to a parent, sibling or other family member who lives with an illness, disability, mental health condition, or substance misuse issue.

Who is a Young Carer?
A young carer is someone under the age of 18 who helps look after someone in their family. This may involve:

• Providing personal care or helping someone to get dressed
• Managing medication or supporting someone with a mental health difficulty
• Looking after siblings while a parent or guardian is unwell
• Helping with household tasks such as cooking, cleaning, or shopping
• Offering emotional support during challenging times

Every young carer’s situation is unique. At Cloughside College, we make no assumptions, each student’s experience is treated with empathy, confidentiality and care.

How We Identify and Support Young Carers
Our pastoral and safeguarding teams are trained to recognise signs that a student may have a caring role. We offer a safe space for students to talk about their circumstances and will always take time to listen.

If a student is identified as a young carer, we will:

• Offer personalised support, tailored to their specific needs and circumstances
• Ensure staff are informed on a need-to-know basis, so students don’t have to explain themselves multiple times
• Provide flexible academic support, including reasonable adjustments with deadlines, homework or attendance
• Promote positive wellbeing, with access to our mental health and emotional support services
• Facilitate access to outside agencies, such as Early Help services, Bury Young Carers, or social care teams

We know that many young carers are highly capable and proud of their role, but they also need time and space to be children and young people, to learn, socialise, and focus on their own development.

Working in Partnership
We work closely with parents, carers, and professionals to ensure that young carers are not overlooked. This includes regular contact with Local Authority teams, including the Bury Young Carers service, and signposting to additional help where needed.

Where appropriate, with the family’s consent, we may initiate an Early Help Assessment or a Team Around the Family (TAF) meeting to coordinate support.

How You Can Let Us Know
If you believe your child is a young carer, or if a student wishes to talk about their caring role, we encourage you to contact our Safeguarding Team or speak to a trusted member of staff.

We are here to support every learner, whatever their personal circumstances.

For more information, contact our Designated Safeguarding Lead, or call the School Office to arrange a confidential conversation.