Definition of a young carer

Young carers are children under the age of 18 who help to look after someone in their home or another family member. This could be a sibling, parent, both parents, or a grandparent who has a disability, illness, mental health condition or who misuses substances.

At Ringwood School, we aim to identify students who are young carers and to offer them support; this includes young adult carers who may attend our sixth form.

If you believe your child is a young carer, and we are currently unaware, or if your child is a young carer and you want to discuss the support available to them in school, please get in touch with us via email to your child’s Tutor, Head of Year, our staff Young Carer Champion (Mrs Hayworth) or main school reception: reception@ringwood.hants.sch.uk, telephone, or via the worry box.

Raising awareness

We want young carers in our school to feel seen, heard and supported. We strive to raise the awareness of young carers amongst staff and students, and to provide effective support to remove any barriers that could potentially inhibit their academic, social or personal development. The diagram below sets out our whole-school approach to supporting and raising awareness of young carers.