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Schools on a mission to identify young carers ahead of census

Pastoral issues Safeguarding Government policy Whole-school issues Pupil wellbeing Attendance
With one in five students having caring responsibilities, schools are being helped to identify and support these vulnerable young people ahead of new census requirements.

The number of young carers in England remains, officially, unknown with many hiding their caring role and therefore remaining unsupported in school.

However, from January 2023, schools are being asked to identify young carers as part of the annual school census (DfE, 2022).

A young carer is a child or young person who cares for a friend or family member who, due to illness, disability, a mental health problem, or an addiction, cannot cope without their support.

Estimates vary as to how many young carers there are. The 2011 national census identified 178,000 young carers in England and Wales. One in eight of those were aged under eight.

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