National Carers Week Starts off with a Bang!

Young carers gathered in the wastelands of Paintball ACT on Sunday to kick off National Carers Week with a bang.  The first official Carers ACT event for the week was all about social connection and providing young carers a chance to relax.

Running from Sunday 16 –  Saturday 22 October 2022, National Carers Week is a time to recognise and celebrate the 2.65 million Australians who provide care and support to a family member or friend. Many of those carers are children and young people.   Quality down time and the chance to be responsibility-free for a short time are important forms of respite for young carers and can make a big different in a young person’s health, happiness, and social support network.

At some stage of our life, every one of us will be a carer or need a carer ourselves.   Supporting carers and ensuring the have the same quality of life as the rest of the community is an integral part of a resilient community that shares the care and allows all of us to step up to a caring role.

While caring can be rewarding, it can also be incredibly hard, isolating, and overwhelming. In addition to the emotional and mental burden, caring can also have a startling impact on carers relationships, finances, education opportunities, and security. For every year someone is a primary carer they will lose on average $39, 600 in earnings and $17, 700 in superannuation. Carers in the ACT also report lower wellbeing, health and mental health that the rest of the population.

For young adult carers on the cusp of adulthood, balancing caring can be a significant disadvantage compared to their peer.  Carers ACT in partnership with the community work with young people to help them access support and peer networks, start or maintain a career, achieve their dreams, and have a balanced, successful, and fulfilling life.