Asked by: Judith Cummins (Labour - Bradford South)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps he is taking to promote flexible and part-time apprenticeships for young carers.
Answered by Anne Milton
We know that some people experience barriers to undertaking full-time employment, such as managing caring responsibilities around a full-time role, so we have made it easier for part-time workers to undertake apprenticeships, such as those with caring responsibilities, including young carers and lone parents.
Our apprenticeships funding rules allow flexible working arrangements. The minimum duration of the apprenticeship can be extended to make sure that working fewer than 30 hours a week is not a barrier to successfully completing an apprenticeship.
Asked by: Judith Cummins (Labour - Bradford South)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, if he will make an assessment of the potential merits of formally identifying young adult carers as a vulnerable group in order to give them full access to the 16-19 bursary.
Answered by Anne Milton
It is very important that we make sure that young carers can participate in education and receive the support they need. However, financial need will vary significantly from family to family.
The department keeps under review the use of the 16-19 Bursary Fund to inform our understanding of whether it is providing effective support to our most economically disadvantaged students.
The defined vulnerable groups eligible for particular support from the 16-19 Bursary Fund are groups that generally do not receive financial support from their families. Young carers can receive help from the discretionary element of the 16-19 Bursary Fund, which is made available to education and training institutions. It is their role to determine which young people need bursaries and the level of financial support required to enable these students to participate.
Young carers are able to discuss their particular needs with their school or college, which can then provide appropriate individualised support. Government guidance for those institutions is very clear about the need to encourage young carers to apply for the bursary fund, to reassure them about confidentiality and to consider whether they need extra help because of their caring responsibilities. Our view is that institutions are best placed to assess the needs of young carers, rather than making a decision at national level.
Asked by: Judith Cummins (Labour - Bradford South)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what plans he has to ensure that children who provide care to a family member receive adequate support.
Answered by Nadhim Zahawi
This month saw the launch of the cross-government, Careers Action Plan (https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/713781/carers-action-plan-2018-2020.pdf),a two-year programme of tailored work to support unpaid carers of all ages.
Chapter three of this important plan sets out the government’s action specifically to support young carers. This includes plans to improve: identification of young carers; educational opportunities and outcomes; access to support and services; and transition for young adult carers.
Following the introduction of duties under the Children and Families Act 2014, the Department for Education commissioned 'The lives of young carers in England' (https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/the-lives-of-young-carers-in-england) omnibus research report, published January 2017. This large-scale study gathered data on experiences of young carers in England, and information about the scale and nature of the care they provide and the issues they face.
The department collects information on young carers through the annual Children in Need census (https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/statistics-children-in-need), which records young carers who are unlikely to achieve or maintain a reasonable level of health or development, or whose health and development is likely to be significantly or further impaired, without the provision of services.
The government is working with organisations who support young carers, for example the Department of Health and Social Care is currently working with Carers Trust on a project to support the effective identification and engagement of young carers.