Please feel free to email us at youngcarers@centre33.org.uk if you are unsure whether or not a referral is appropriate
Definition
Young carers are young people under the age of 18 who provide care, unpaid, for a family member with an illness or disability, mental health conditions or an addiction.

Young people taking on a caring role aged 16 – 25 are termed young adult carers.

Service Offer
Following triage, our initial offer of a service is a strengths and needs based assessment to establish the level of caring responsibility and impact. The outcome of the assessment will determine the level of support and recommendations for services to offer the young person and their family, this includes an individual action plan which may include multiple agencies.

Not all of Centre 33 Young Carers services may be necessary or are guaranteed to every young carer. As a standard, with young person/parental consent, we will liaise with schools and GPs.
 
To consider before making a referral:
Centre 33 Young Carers provides services to young carers aged 25 and under (Cambridgeshire) and up to 18 (Peterborough). Where there are concerns about a child taking on caring responsibilities who is under 8, we recommend that an Early Help Assessment be considered as standard.

When referring you will be asked to identify the practical and/or emotional caring responsibilities undertaken by the child/young person and the impact those responsibilities are having upon at least one of the following:
  • Physical/mental health
  • Education
  • Emotional and behavioural development
  • Family and social/peer relationships

Where caring responsibilities or impact on the child or young person are unclear, you will be asked to clarify.
Priority will be given to a ‘primary’ young carer i.e. where there is no adult carer.

It may not be suitable to make a referral for a child/young person if:
  • There is no consent from the young person.
  • There is no parental consent and the young person is under 13 years of age.
  • Their caring responsibilities do not have an adverse impact on their physical/mental health, education, emotional or behavioural development
  • Care tasks are age appropriate and do not exceed what an ‘average’ child of their age would undertake (e.g. a teenager helping with some housework, walking to the local shops etc.)
  • Their caring responsibilities are due to parenting issues or neglect (i.e. caring for siblings because parents are working or inattentive)