MONMOUTHSHIRE councillors acknowledged the role of county’s young carers by involving them in creating new strategy, writes Jack Simmonds.

Young people, aged 11-21 charged with caring for members of their family attended Monmouthshire’s Children and Young People’s Select Committee recently in County Hall, Usk to give an account of how they collaborated with council offers to develop a young carers’ strategy and the benefits it would bring to their lives.

One of the key points was the need for a greater appreciation of their role as a young carer in schools and higher education.

The select committee debated the council’s first Monmouthshire Young Carers’ Strategy 2017-2020 and heard from those attending that a greater understanding and recognition of their roles by professionals would help dealing their situation massively.

Some ways of offering support would be for teachers to have a greater understanding of situations like late homework and absences from lessons. These acknowledgements of circumstances by staff encouraged not only a positive response, but gave them the incentive to continue with their studies.

Paul Matthews, Monmouthshire’s Chief Executive expressed his admiration for the work that these young people do.

“We have listened to the inspirational stories of our young carers and are grateful for their participation to make our newly-published strategy an effective document," he said.

"We hope that this will provide them with the necessary support they require to lead full and rewarding lives.”

Councillors also acknowledged the importance of the young people being involved in discussions with the council’s service providers and praised them for their tenacity, resilience and positivity given their situations.

For further information on the council’s Monmouthshire Young Carers’ Strategy 2017-2020, contact: Carers Services Development Manager, Kim Sparrey at kimsparrey@monmouthshire.gov.uk