Summer fun for RCT young carers

Summer fun for RCT young carers

• Margam Park Go Ape, Cardiff Bay speedboating among trips courtesy of funds raised by former Mayor of RCT, Cllr Rhys Lewis
• Time away from caring role vital to young people and often their only break

A group of youngsters from Action for Children’s RCT Young Carers project has enjoyed a summer of fun at place such as Margam Park Go Ape, Cardiff Bay, West Midlands Safari Park and Weston-Super-Mare. The trips were made possible thanks to money raised by Cynon Taf Community Housing and 2016’s Mayor of Rhondda Cynon Taf, Cllr Rhys Lewis who had chosen the leading charity as one of the beneficiaries of his year in office.

The trips allowed them to have a proper break from their caring responsibilities as a recent Action for Children and Carers Trust survey found that nearly two thirds (62 per cent) of Welsh young carers feel lonely during the summer holidays and over a third (35 per cent) spend more than four hours a day during the summer caring for a relative – the equivalent of losing an entire week of their holidays.

Sam Jones (17) from Llantrisant, a young carer who looks after his mother, often for over four hours a day, said: ‘The trips are great because I can have a break without having to do anything and just relax with my friends. Go Ape was my favourite day out and it’s good because it’s the only break I get in the summer.

‘It’s also really important to me being here with people with similar experiences as they know what you’re going through and understand.’

Action for Children’s RCT Young Carers project provides a range of practical support to young carers which reduces the impact of their caring role on their own childhood and adolescent development. The projects also works to raise awareness and recognition of the needs of young carers in RCT and to develop and improve services for them and their families.

Laura Jones, young persons’ practitioner at RCT Young Carers, said: ‘‘It’s very important they get this break because at home they’re not just teenagers going through all the usual teenage things that they have to put up with like exams and peer pressure.

‘They also go home and it’s non-stop looking after their family members. It’s a constant overload of stuff so coming away on these trips is imperative for them to shut off from the world and enjoy time together. We are very grateful to Cynon Taf Community Housing and the former Mayor of RCT, Cllr Rhys Lewis for all their help in raising the money for us to give a break to those who need it most in our communities.’

If you would like any more information on the young carers service, please contact Trudy Fisher on 01443 433079 or email Trudy.Fisher@actionforchildren.org.uk