Former young carer sets up new social influencing group with charity for other young carers

A young adult carer who was supported by Barnardo's in Liverpool is now volunteering with the charity and has set up a new group to support other young carers in the Region. Katie O'Shaughnessy, 26, from Liverpool, was supported by Barnardo's Action with Young Carers for several years after she became a carer at the age of 18 for her mum who has vascular dementia.

Now studying in her second year of a Masters degree at university, Katie wanted to give something back to help other young carers in the City. She is volunteering with Barnardo's, where she has jointly set up a new social influencing group with the charity, providing social outings and opportunities for young carers to influence key people in the City and beyond.

The group, which has been running since July last year, builds on existing participation work run by Barnardo's, giving young carers a voice in arenas where decisions which affect them are made. The group also provides a social aspect for young carers to support each other and go out to do activities together.

There are currently around 15 young carers in the group aged between 14 and 25, who meet on a regular basis to talk about issues affecting young carers that they want to make people aware of, identify influential people they want to connect with and create opportunities to build links with them.

Since its start, the group has carried out work with Liverpool City Council to input to strategies for carers and making Liverpool a child friendly City, delivered workshops to medical students, as well as done work for the Now Festival, with Ikea to support young carers, and in the coming months will be developing workshops to deliver to Barnardo's staff and young people at a conference for services across the North West.

Some recent work from the social influencing group can be followed here on twitter.

Katie O'Shaughnessy said:- "Being involved with Barnardo's allowed me not only to receive support around my caring role, but to get involved in so many great things to develop my confidence and raise awareness of young carers, even speaking at the Houses of Parliament. 1 of the other ways it helped me was having a support network with other young carers. It can feel isolating being a carer, but we all share that same sense of understanding and belonging with each other. I wanted to pick up all the great things Barnardo's were doing already and put it in 1 place, so they helped me to set up the social influencing group. It's run by the young people themselves, with support from myself and Barnardo's, and allows them to have their voices heard across a multitude of platforms, as well as arrange social outings to go out and have fun together. It's great to help these young people build their confidence and resilience and to see them realise just how inspirational they all are."

Barnardo's Action with Young Carers provides a support service for young carers and young adult carers up to and including the age of 25 in Liverpool, and young carers up to age 18 in Wirral. The services, which are commissioned by Liverpool City Council and Wirral Council, carry out assessments with young carers to ensure the whole family is receiving the right level of care from a range of agencies. Support plans, agreed with the young person and their family, are put in place and reviewed to meet the young person's needs and reduce the negative impact of their caring role.

Specialist workers from Barnardo's provide 1 to 1 support to young carers, including emotional support, information and emergency planning, liaison with Schools, as well as opportunities for breaks from care, where they can meet other young carers and share experiences with each other.

Paula Hume, Children's Services Manager for Barnardo's Action with Young Carers services said:- "Young carers are amazing young people who give so much to help care for their loved ones, but their roles at home can often impact quite significantly on their own lives, including their education and personal wellbeing. It's crucial these young carers can have a childhood and their own life outside of caring, as well as being able to access the same opportunities as others their age. We are incredibly proud of Katie and all that she has achieved and we are delighted to now have her volunteering with us, inspiring other young carers and providing them with aspirations for their future following education. If anyone thinks they may be a young carer or wants to seek advice for another young person, we would encourage them to get in contact with us and we can arrange an assessment to help identify their needs."

Call Barnardo's on:- 0151 228 4455 (Liverpool) or 0151 650 5488 (Wirral) to speak to a member of the team. Visit:- Barnardos.Org.UK/YoungCarersNorthWest.

Merseyside businesses invited to Bridge the Gap

BRADBURY Fields Services for Blind and Partially Sighted People, in collaboration with Merseyside Sight Loss Council and Jigsaw Coaching is inviting businesses within the Merseyside Region, who are looking to increase diversity in their workforce, to:- 'Bridge the Gap.' The event at Liverpool Football Club's Anfield Stadium, on Thursday, 20 February 2020, will feature perspectives from businesses and the opportunity to meet blind and partially sighted candidates looking for work. It will also highlight some of the practical, financial and technical support available to employers and challenge some of the myths around employing blind and partially sighted people. The initiative is part of the Bridge the Gap project, funded by Visionary, to enhance the employment prospects of people with vision impairment in the Liverpool City Region. Jigsaw Coaching has helped individuals to improve their confidence and self belief, with support from Bradbury Fields Services for Blind and Partially Sighted People.  Jill Barlow, Chief Executive of Jigsaw Coaching said:- "Finding suitable work is a journey with many stages and the coaching, together with the peer support provided by Bradbury Fields, have been important in helping participants to move forward."

Hosted by Liverpool Football Club, the event takes place from 8:30am to 1pm with speakers including:- Marsha de Cordova, Shadow Minister for Disability, and other political and business leaders. Iain Mitchell, Engagement Manager at Merseyside Sight Loss Council, said:- "The Bridge the Gap event is a unique opportunity to bring people together so that we can harness the skills, talents and contribution of blind and partially sighted people in the Merseyside Region, creating a more inclusive and fairer society."

The Sight Loss Council, funded by Thomas Pocklington Trust and led by blind and partially sighted volunteers, advocates the needs, and campaigns on behalf of, blind and partially sighted people in the area. Thomas Pocklington Trust is a national charity dedicated to supporting blind and partially sighted people. To find out more visit:- SightLossCouncils.Org.UK/Event/Bridge-The-Gap or to register for a place at the event via email.