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28
Sept
Young carers in Harrogate left with nowhere to go after charity closes their 'safe place'
Once a fortnight, young carers from across the Harrogate district have come together to share a break from their home environment. These are children who all have a necessary caring role to play at home – typically, for a family member who is disabled or ill.
These Young Carers groups, run by Yorkshire charity Carers’ Resource, have provided the children with much-needed respite and a chance to lead a more carefree life – at least for a couple of hours.
After the summer break, the two clubs, which ran on alternate weeks – Budz for seven to 11-year-olds, and U Time for 11 to 19-year-olds – should have started up again this month, but they haven’t.
Parents received a letter at the end of August to tell them with just one week’s notice that the clubs had been axed due to a lack of funds.
One of the youth clubs was held at the Methodist Church on Skipton Road in Harrogate
Their loss is being keenly felt – not least by the staff who worked there. One of them is Linda Hall, a young carer and family support worker who ran the groups with colleague Nadine Stocks.
She said:
These groups are vital. It’s how these kids connected with each other. It was a safe space, where they all respected each other and no-one judged anyone. They never talked about their caring role – that's what they’d come for a break from – but they all just got on, and everybody was happy.
A lot of these kids are very vulnerable, and they needed that time. We’d hook in with them every week and make sure they were OK.
'Who do I go to now?'
One of these young carers is Isla*. Her elder brother, now 18, was groomed as a young teenager by a County Lines drugs gang.
Her mother, Sarah*, who has health problems, told us:
I’ve lost count of the amount of times that he’s been arrested, that the house has been raided by the police, that our bedrooms have been searched for drugs and weapons.
As her son got older, he became increasingly violent and had to be removed from the family home. He now lives in special accommodation.
Sarah said:
When Isla was younger I could keep her away from a lot of it, but as she grew older, it became impossible. She's seen too much, and she got really scared. She still sleeps in my bed.
Young Carers was her go-to place, her release. She could talk to Linda and Nadine about anything. They’re so kind and go above and beyond, taking the kids on trips, calling round to check we’re OK, and giving Isla lifts because I don’t drive.
Isla was going to move up into the older kids’ club this autumn and was really looking forward to it, but now that won’t happen.
When I got the letter and told her, she was so upset. She went into a panic, asking me, ‘Who do I go to now?’. Linda was that person. It’s just so sad.
Caring brothers
Benji and Noah are two other young carers who are missing the clubs. Their younger brother, Arthur, is autistic and has severe physical and learning disabilities, and they have had caring roles for the past seven years.
Their mum, Elizabeth Hollins, told the Stray Ferret:
Due to Arthur’s autism there are certain behaviours that Benji and Noah have to deal with at home, which can be very challenging and, because he doesn’t sleep well, they also have to deal with sleep-deprived parents!
We’re often not available to help with homework, and it’s difficult to do normal family activities, so the club gives them a ‘night off’, and lets them relax with other children in a similar situation.
There’s also a qualified worker there, so they can ask them questions that they wouldn’t necessarily ask me because they might be afraid of making me worried.
Elizabeth Hollins
In common with Sarah, Elizabeth credits much of the success and value of the clubs to the people who ran them. She said:
During lockdown, which was horrific for us, Linda came and took the children for walks and made sure they were getting enough exercise. She really understands the boys, and I’m devastated for her.
St George's community centre - the venue for the other one of the clubs
'It's crushing to me'
The Stray Ferret understands that Linda and Nadine were offered new contracts, but on the basis of just 15 hours a week between them – far short of the 57 hours they had previously been paid for. They are understood to have turned down the offer because it was not enough to cover their own living expenses or to provide the Young Carers youth club service, which was attended by 30 to 45 children a week.
Linda said:
Not to be in that job is crushing to me. It’s the best job I’ve ever had – I loved every single minute of it.
Why the clubs were closed
Carers’ Resource is now recruiting for a new member of staff to run the Harrogate Young Carer service, including the youth clubs.
The Stray Ferret asked the charity how much extra funding it would need to continue the service in its previous form, but chief executive Heidi Watson declined to provide a figure. She said:
Like all charities across the country, we are facing challenging financial times, and we need to make sure we manage our resources as effectively as we can.
Although our funding from North Yorkshire Council remains at the same level, various other supplementary funding sources have reduced, and costs have increased.
She declined to name any of the “supplementary funding sources”.
She added:
The Young Carer specific youth clubs in Harrogate are well attended and require multiple staff/volunteers to run them safely. These have therefore been put on hold. We do aim to resume these clubs when we have a suitable ratio of staff and volunteers available to do so safely, however it is likely that the frequency will need to be reduced.
We would welcome the support of new volunteers and if any of your readers feel able to give their time to support the clubs, please do get in touch with us.
There are other youth clubs available which young carers can attend across the area.
'I wish I could start a group myself'
But Linda Hall said that any delay in getting the clubs up and running to the previous capacity could make their ultimate recovery less likely. She said:
The longer there isn’t a club running, the less I think the children will hook back up again.
You can’t just say, ‘you can go somewhere else’, because any other youth clubs are not going to be for them. They’re all carers, and they need somewhere to go that is theirs.
I’m heartbroken about it. I wish I could start up a group myself just to keep them together, because I know how much it means to them.
In the meantime, some parents are hoping to do something to save their children’s clubs, and at least one has been in contact with Harrogate and Knaresborough MP Tom Gordon, who told us:
We are in touch with Young Carers about the current situation. We are arranging a meeting with them as soon as possible to discuss the closures and understand what issues have led to the ending of these services.
But other parents may not have the energy. Elizabeth said:
When you’ve got a disabled child, you’re already involved in so many battles for services, schools, transport – you really have to advocate for your child – so another fight is the last thing we need.
*Names have been changed to protect identities.
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