GPs need to take a more active role helping identify young people who care for family members, according to a children’s charity.

Barnardo's works with Bradford Council to offer support to the district’s young carers.

It is involved with various organisations including schools, children’s services and adult services to identify just how many young carers there are in the district, and the best ways to offer them support.

Last year, 257 children were helped by the area’s young carer service, although there are likely to be many more who have not yet been identified as carers.

Those who have been identified balance normal young lives with caring for a mother, father, sibling or grandparent.

Organisations are asked to refer children to the service if they find out that they are carers, either through speaking to the child, the person they are caring for, or someone familiar with the family situation.

The most recent report into support offered to carers shows children’s services made up the highest number of referrals, followed by school nurses.

But there were no referrals from GPs, despite a push by the charity to get more GPs to recognise young carers.

Kerry McKenna from Barnardo's presented the report to the council’s Children’s Services Scrutiny Committee and told members: “The sticky wicket is still getting GPs to make more referrals.

“We have had no referrals from GPs. We need to raise awareness with them of the importance of identifying when a young person is a carer. Once a GP recognises someone as a young carer then then can pass their details on to a school nurse very quickly.

“Last year we were struggling to get high schools to identify young carers, but that has changed for the better.”

Each secondary school in the district now has a member of staff trained to identify carers, who offer them support and point them to any help they need.

Mrs McKenna said: “We still should be getting a lot more referrals from adult services.” Just two per cent of referrals last year came from adult services.

“Sometimes young people don’t even realise they are carers themselves, they don’t see their lives as being any different, “ she added.

“I don’t think in this country we will ever have a system where we’re 100 per cent sure how many young carers we have.”

Councillor Sinead Engel (Lab, Clayton and Fairweather Green) said: “Is it possible that we could put some more pressure on Clinical Commissioning Groups to reflect the issue of GPs identifying young carers?”

Committee chairman Councillor Dale Smith suggested the authority’s Health and Wellbeing Board look at the issue of GP referrals.

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