Alumni donations are supporting young carers

So far, over £43,000 has been donated by generous alumni and friends in support of young carers at the University through a recent appeal. This is enough to support seven young carers over the course of a three-year degree. The Young Carer Award makes such a difference to those who need it and gives students financial freedom to look after their family and make the most of their student experience.

Support at the right time can make all the difference

Across the UK, there are hundreds of thousands of young people who provide unpaid care to family members. Research shows that, currently, 29% of young carers in the UK drop out of higher education. That’s four times greater than the national average for degree courses. The cost-of-living crisis also continues to negatively impact students, with young carers particularly affected if a family member is ill, disabled or is unable to work.

Support, including financial support through scholarships, can make all the difference in helping these talented young people make the step to and remain in higher education.

The Young Carer Award, worth £2,000 per year, helps cover the extra costs of travelling home more often, and sometimes urgently, to take care of a family member. It also helps with paying for equipment, textbooks and other expenses that the family might not otherwise be able to afford.

Improving the student experience

Jerome, a second-year social anthropology student, cares for his mum who has a long-term condition. Thanks to the award, he can be there for his mum when she needs him, while also fully making the most of his time at Birmingham.

He says: ‘My second year has been going fantastically so far. There’s been a lot of change; moving into a house and doing more work, but it has been a lot easier with the funding. With the funding, I have gone back home on multiple occasions to help my mother, with day-to-day tasks on the weekend, such as cooking, and ensuring she gets what she needs, as well as helping with bigger tasks like decorating for Christmas and giving her time to herself.

‘I have also used the funding to explore more opportunities at University too, volunteering with Debate Mate, where university students run extra-curricular debate workshops in schools to help tackle educational disadvantage, which I would not easily be able to take on without my car, and spending important moments with my friends.

‘Next year I will be going to Melbourne for my year abroad, which I would have never even dreamed of as a possibility without receiving the Young Carer Award. Thank you so much to all the fantastic contributors and donors.’

Thank you once again to all our alumni and friends who have supported bright, talented and deserving students. Thanks to your generosity, we can help young carers at Birmingham to thrive during their studies and build the skills and confidence needed to succeed before and after graduation.

Find out more about how you can support young carers.

Donors to the appeal also sent in kind words of support for young carers studying at the University - thank you for all these contributions. 

Read the donor messages of support in the Flickr album.