Council launches advice sessions for young carers

The city council estimates that at least 900 under-18s have caring responsibilities

Young carers in Wolverhampton are being offered free weekly advice sessions.

The city council is running the sessions at family hubs, centres that provide services for parents, children and young people under one roof.

Young carers will be able to find out about services such as support workers, who can meet with them and advise them on coping with their role.

Lesley Johnson, who manages the council’s carer support team, said the 2021 census showed there were 900 young carers in Wolverhampton but there were likely to be many more.

A young carer is someone under the age of 18 who helps to care for a person in their family, due to reasons such as a physical disability, mental health issue or any long-term illness.

The sessions will take place at Low Hill family hub on Tuesday afternoons and at Graiseley family hub on Friday afternoons.

The council plans to roll the sessions out across all eight of its family hubs although it has not given a timeline for this.

Support workers can also help young carers to find out about social events and activities that will give them a break from their role at home.