King Charles III and Queen Camilla met with the head of an Oxfordshire charity supporting young carers during a reception at Windsor Castle recognising the UK’s 5.8 million unpaid carers.
Sabiene North, CEO of Be Free Young Carers, attended the event to highlight the charity’s work with young people across the county and the growing challenges they face.
The organisation supports around 750 young carers every year, providing recreational activities, emotional support and opportunities designed to improve wellbeing and life chances for children who help care for family members.
During the reception, Ms North spoke with Their Majesties about the pressures facing young carers, particularly the impact of limited support for children with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND).
She explained that when older children with SEND do not receive adequate support, younger siblings can be forced to take on additional caring responsibilities, creating further strain on families and affecting young people’s education and development.
Research from the Carers Trust highlights the scale of the issue. The study found that the average young carer misses 23 days of school each year, around 60 per cent more than their peers. It also found young carers are 33 per cent more likely to fall behind expected levels in reading, writing and mathematics between the ages of five and 11.
Ms North said:
“Being a young carer is the ultimate responsibility.
“It is entirely selfless, and often a young person has no choice but to put their own concerns and time for development to one side so they can care for a loved one.
“Fewer than half of young carers achieve five GCSE passes, which is a clear marker of how the responsibility of being a young carer negatively impacts a person’s future prospects.
“To be invited by Their Majesties to Windsor Castle to shine a light on this was a personal priviledge and honour on behalf of our hard-working team.
“Both the King and Queen spoke passionately about the critical role young carers have in society, and how such stories of love, care and compassion can provide an example and inspiration to us all.”
At the reception Ms North also spoke with Keir Starmer, who previously cared for his mother Josephine, who lived with Still’s disease, and Ed Davey, who also cared for his mother during her illness.
Kate Garraway was also present at the event and spoke about the experience of caring for her late husband Derek and the impact it had on her children.
The reception was held ahead of the UK Government’s forthcoming schools and SEND system reform white paper, which aims to ensure every child has the opportunity to succeed in education.
Ms North said it is essential that the reforms recognise the pressures faced by young carers.
“Introducing reforms without considering the effects on young carers risks creating further barriers to learning for children we work with,” she said.
“The Government has acknowledged in its white paper that caring can harm young people’s development and wellbeing. It is therefore essential that it adopts a whole-family approach and carefully considers how each stage of the reforms could affect young carers.”
More information about Be Free Young Carers is available at befreeyc.org.uk.
