Across the United Kingdom, an estimated one million young people under eighteen are quietly shouldering the weight of adult responsibility — managing medications, monitoring health conditions, and holding households together — while their peers move freely through adolescence. Official figures capture only a fraction of this reality, leaving the majority invisible to the support systems that exist in their name. The story of one seventeen-year-old in north London, who gave up dancing, changed schools repeatedly, and cannot imagine leaving home for university, places a human face on a structura
Hidden burden: How 17-year-old carers sacrifice education and youth for family
Young carers sacrifice educational achievement, social development, and mental health while managing demanding care responsibilities that can exceed 50 hours weekly, with lasting impacts on their life trajectories.
You have to make sacrifices. I can't do all the things my friends do.
Mark
When you read about Ava-Grace, what strikes you most—the lost opportunities, or the fact that she's still trying?
Mimi
Both, but differently. The lost opportunities are concrete: the dance competition she had to abandon, the university she can't imagine attending. But what stays with me is that she's still showing up. She's still in college, still thinking about her future, still worried about her father. That's the real weight of it.
Mark
The numbers are staggering—1 million young carers, maybe more. Why do you think so many remain hidden?
Mimi
Because caring for family doesn't announce itself. It happens quietly, in the mornings before school, in the afternoons after. A parent doesn't call the council and say "my teenager is now my backup nurse." It just becomes normal. By the time anyone notices, years have passed.
Mark
The data shows young carers are 25 percent less likely to pass their GCSEs. Is that because they don't have time to study, or something deeper?
Mimi
It's both. Yes, there's the time problem—Ava-Grace has to rush home. But there's also the mental load. You can't focus on algebra when you're monitoring someone's blood sugar levels in the back of your mind. And then there's the instability: she changed schools multiple times because of bullying and attendance issues tied to her caring role. That fractures your education in ways that are hard to recover from.
Mark
Andy McGowan says the support that exists is "patchy." What does that mean in practice?
Mimi
It means a young carer in one borough might get respite care, counseling, and peer support. Twenty miles away, another teenager gets nothing. It depends on whether their local council has funding, whether they've been identified, whether anyone thought to refer them. It's luck, not design.
Mark
He also says the real problem—the caring demands themselves—often goes unaddressed. What would addressing it actually look like?
Mimi
It would mean lowering the threshold for adult social care so that Paul, for example, could get more professional support at home. It would mean the NHS stepping in earlier with mental health support for young carers, before the damage accumulates. Right now, the system waits until young people are in crisis. It's reactive, not preventative.
Mark
Karen says Ava-Grace has grown up quickly and gained maturity from it. Isn't that a kind of silver lining?
Mimi
Karen is seeing something real—Ava-Grace is resilient and thoughtful. But maturity forced on you by circumstance isn't the same as maturity you choose. Ava-Grace didn't get to be a teenager. She got to be a caregiver who happens to be seventeen. That's not a silver lining. That's a trade-off she shouldn't have had to make.
El Pulso
- An estimated one million young people in the UK are providing unpaid care to family members, yet official systems count fewer than 130,000 — meaning the vast majority receive no formal recognition or support.
- Young carers are 25% less likely to pass five GCSEs and twice as likely to spend years outside education or employment, with bullying, chronic absence, and social isolation compounding the damage.
- The threshold for adult social care is set so high that most families never qualify, leaving young carers to absorb demands that can exceed 50 hours a week with no meaningful relief.
- Council assessments and a new government action plan exist on paper, but support remains deeply uneven depending on postcode, and experts warn that without reforming adult care thresholds, inequalities will only deepen.
- A generation of young people is trading education, friendships, and future prospects for family obligation — and the systems designed to catch them are arriving, if at all, far too late.
Across the United Kingdom, an estimated one million young people under eighteen are quietly shouldering the weight of adult responsibility — managing medications, monitoring health conditions, and holding households together — while their peers move freely through adolescence. Official figures capture only a fraction of this reality, leaving the majority invisible to the support systems that exist in their name. The story of one seventeen-year-old in north London, who gave up dancing, changed schools repeatedly, and cannot imagine leaving home for university, places a human face on a structural failure: a society that depends on its youngest members to fill the gaps left by underfunded adult social care.
Ava-Grace Britton is seventeen, studying acting in north London, and hoping to go to university. But most mornings before college and most afternoons after, she helps her father with his medication, monitors his blood sugar, and manages the household. Her father Paul suffered a series of strokes eight years ago following a sepsis infection, leaving him with significant mobility problems and memory loss. Her mother Karen runs a charity and together they provide his full-time care.
Ava-Grace is one of an estimated one million young people under eighteen in the UK serving as unpaid carers. Official census data counts around 130,000 in England and Wales, but the Carers Trust believes the true figure is far higher, with hundreds of thousands more young adults in similar situations going unrecognised. For some, the weekly commitment exceeds fifty hours. Ava-Grace has changed schools multiple times after bullying and attendance struggles, gave up competitive dancing she loved, and cannot picture leaving home for university. "You have to make sacrifices," she said. "I can't do all the things my friends do."
The statistics confirm what her life reflects. Young carers are 25% less likely to achieve five GCSE passes and twice as likely to spend two or more years out of education or employment. The Carers Trust has also documented a sharp rise in young people caring for non-parent relatives, driven partly by the cost-of-living crisis forcing parents to prioritise earning over childcare.
Support exists in principle — councils are required to assess young carers' wellbeing — but Andy McGowan of the Carers Trust, himself a former young carer, describes the reality as patchy and postcode-dependent. More fundamentally, he argues, assessments and respite breaks do not reduce the caring demands themselves. The threshold for adult social care is set so high that most families never qualify, and until that changes, he warns, the inequalities will persist.
In July, the government published an action plan for unpaid carers including improved school support and better cross-sector coordination. Scotland has introduced a dedicated young carers' grant. But for families like the Brittons, the need is immediate. "She has had to grow up very quickly," Karen said of her daughter. "Ava-Grace and others like her need more help and understanding." The question is whether the systems meant to protect young carers will finally catch up before another generation pays the price.
Ava-Grace Britton is 17, studying acting at a college in north London, and like most teenagers her age, she wants to go to university next year. She also wants to spend time with friends, to pursue the things that matter to her. But before she heads to college most mornings, and again most afternoons when she returns, she helps her father with his medication, monitors his blood sugar, and manages the practical demands of keeping a household running. Her father Paul suffered a series of strokes eight years ago—triggered by a sepsis infection he contracted after a small cut at work—and the damage left him with significant mobility problems and memory loss. He can no longer work as a borehole engineer. Her mother Karen runs a charity organizing lunch clubs for elderly and vulnerable people. Between them, Ava-Grace and her mother provide his full-time care.
"I worry about him all the time," Ava-Grace told the BBC. "Before I go to college I help him and most days I have to return home quickly to look after him." She is one of an estimated 1 million young people under 18 across the UK who serve as unpaid carers for family members. Official census data counts around 130,000 carers under 18 in England and Wales alone, but the Carers Trust believes the real number is far higher, with perhaps another 500,000 young adults aged 18 to 25 in similar situations. Many remain invisible to the systems designed to help them.
For some young carers, the weekly commitment exceeds 50 hours. The consequences ripple through every part of their lives. Ava-Grace has had to change schools multiple times after experiencing bullying and struggling with attendance. She has epilepsy, which adds another layer of complexity to her days. She gave up competitive dancing—something she loved—because the time commitment was impossible to manage alongside her caring duties. "You have to make sacrifices," she said. "I can't do all the things my friends do." When she thinks about university, she cannot imagine leaving home. She knows her father needs her.
The data bears out what her experience suggests. Young carers are 25 percent less likely to achieve five GCSE passes including English and mathematics than their peers. As a result, they are twice as likely to spend two years or more out of education, employment, or training. More than half of young carers, like Ava-Grace, provide support to parents. The rest care for siblings and grandparents. The Carers Trust has documented a sharp rise in young people caring for non-parent relatives in recent years, driven partly by the cost of living crisis forcing parents to prioritize earning money over childcare. The weight of these responsibilities makes socializing difficult, contributes to higher rates of bullying and school absence, and in some cases leads to suspensions.
Support exists in theory. Young carers are entitled to assessments from their local council examining the impact on their health, education, and wellbeing. Andy McGowan, who leads the young carers program at the Carers Trust and was himself a young carer to both his parents, acknowledges that these assessments can make a real difference. But he points to a critical gap: "It takes many years of caring before they are actually identified. And then the support in place to help is patchy, it really depends on where you live." Even when councils do provide respite breaks, peer support, and counseling, McGowan argues, the underlying problem remains unaddressed. The caring demands themselves do not lighten.
The threshold for accessing adult social care from councils is set so high that many families never qualify for help. Until that changes, McGowan says, the inequalities young carers face will persist. He also points to what the NHS could do—preventative and early support for mental health and substance misuse, which are often connected to the stress of caring responsibilities. "Often young carers are left to fight their own battles for too long," he said, "and so school and their own health come second."
In July, the government published an action plan for unpaid carers that included measures aimed at young carers, such as improved support in schools and better coordination between the NHS, social care, and education. Scotland has established a dedicated young carers' grant. A government spokesman told the BBC: "Through our new national care service, this government is determined to build a system that recognises the extraordinary contribution of unpaid carers, supports them better and, in particular, helps young carers."
For the Britton family, the need is urgent. Karen worries about the toll on her daughter. "She has had to grow up very quickly," Karen said. "That has had benefits—she is calmer and more mature than many girls her age and she has a real strength about her. But Ava-Grace and others like her need more help and understanding." Ava-Grace's story is one of a million. The question now is whether the systems meant to support them will catch up before another generation of young people sacrifices their education and youth to family obligation.
Citas Notables
It takes many years of caring before they are actually identified. And then the support in place to help is patchy, it really depends on where you live.— Andy McGowan, Carers Trust
She has had to grow up very quickly. But Ava-Grace and others like her need more help and understanding.— Karen Britton, Ava-Grace's mother
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