Working with the APPG on Young Carers: Reflections from Emma, Youth Ambassador

Wednesday 14 Jan 2026 @ 10:10
Children’s Commissioner

My Youth Ambassadors advocate to make children’s lives better across the country. Here, Ambassador Emma reflects on her role working with the All Party Parliamentary Group (APPG) on Young Carers and its inquiry into the barriers to higher education, employment and training for young adult carers.

The APPG launched its report in Parliament yesterday, which looked at the impact many young carers feel balancing caring, earning and learning has on their future opportunities. It raises concerns around support being a postcode lottery especially when transitioning to higher education, poor data collection on caring responsibilities of young people and a lack of support for young carers with additional needs.

Young carers at the APPG report launch said they were not asking for special treatment, but for fairness. Emma has been contributing to the APPG’s inquiry – here is some of her story:

I am a young carer from Sheffield, and alongside other young carers I have been working closely to help contribute to the APPG’s inquiry with my own experiences.

A young carer is someone under the age of 18 who looks after a family member or friend who has a physical or mental health condition, or who might misuse drugs or alcohol.

The 2021 ONS census reported there were around 120,000 young carers in England, while the Department for Education’s school census found 64,500 young carers in the country in 2024/25. The Children’s Commissioner’s School and College Census, published in September, found that school leaders believe there to be nearly 74,683 young carers among their students.

As an Ambassador for the Children’s Commissioner I think it’s important that I spread awareness about being a young carer and the APPG’s inquiry, so I interviewed other young people who are young carers to share our experiences about the barriers we face.

I know from my experience of being a young carer and grappling with how challenging school can be. I always found it hard to leave my caring responsibilities at home, which meant I would never be fully engrossed in my studies. I would be overwhelmed and stressed from what might be going on at home, and I couldn’t manage it with school.

Click here for the full press release

Channel website: https://www.childrenscommissioner.gov.uk/

Original article link: https://www.childrenscommissioner.gov.uk/news-and-blogs/working-with-the-appg-on-young-carers-reflections-from-emma-youth-ambassador/

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