Policy and planning
Government and Local Authorities are increasingly recognising that young carers and their families are a vulnerable group, for whom delivering the outcomes of Every Child Matters requires a planned and coordinated approach.
Any professionals responsible for policy and planning services in their local authority may find the following documents useful:
The Practice guidance to the Carers (Equal Opportunities) Act 2004 states that Local Authorities should have "a protocol, shared between adults and children’s services, for identifying and assessing young carers".
Delivering Every Child Matters for young carers (406 KB) is a document which sets out the barriers for young carers in achieving the ECM outcomes and how support for young carers can help local authorities evidence that they have met Joint Area Review inspection targets.
Authorities can expect to be asked about their services for young carers in Joint Area Reviews. Furthermore, as the most desirable outcome for the child is that the family is able to find more appropriate sources of care, the vital role of adults' services in supporting parents who have care needs is becoming more widely recognised1.
We recommend that any planning your local authority undertakes for young carers should have a multi-agency approach in order to best support the needs of the whole family.
At What Cost To Young Carers?
At What Cost To Young Carers? An economic assessment of the value of young carers’ interventions for young carers’ affected by parental substance misuse and mental health problems - published 24 March 2009.
Read the full report (336 KB) Read a summary of the report (563 KB)
1 Fair Access to Care, Department of Health
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