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Frettens supports MyTime Young Carers
Frettens are supporting the fantastic local charity, MYTIME Young Carers in 2022-2024.
Frettens' charity of the year
Every year we vote for a charity of the year to sponsor. Everyone at Frettens has the opportunity to propose a charity, and a shortlist is then voted on by the whole team.
In 2022-2024, we will be supporting MyTime Young Carers, a fantastic local charity that aims to level the playing field for young carers.
MyTime Young Carers
MyTime Young Carers aims to provide support for young carers wherever there is a need.
A young carer is a child between the age of 5 to 18 who provides care for another person of any age. They could provide care for their parent, parents, brother, sister or grandparent.
How many young carers are there in Dorset?
Recent research from Nottingham University suggests that 1 in 12 children are young carers. Based on this figure, there could be 11,000 in Dorset alone.
It is difficult to accurately identify young carers for a number of reasons.
Click the carousel below to learn more about MyTime. The carousel works best in full screen.
What do MyTime do to support young carers?
Caring responsibilities can have far-reaching impact on a child’s life, and MyTime know that no two young carers’ needs are the same. That’s why they offer a range of programmes, each designed to address a different area of need and to provide a different kind of support.
Memory-making and R&R Retreat Programme
The young carers they work with tell them that their caring roles can often cause them to feel lonely. Friends who do not have the same responsibilities may be unable to understand or relate to the challenges of a caring role, and this can create feelings of isolation for young carers. Those who have never met another young carer, or do not realise they have, may perceive themselves to be entirely alone in their experiences.
The truth is that young carers belong to an enormous community - they just don’t always realise it. In actual fact, according to research carried out by Nottingham University and the BBC, there are around 700,000 young carers living in the UK today. MYTIME's Memory-Making and R&R Retreat programmes aim to create vital opportunities for these young carers to meet one another, build support networks and form friendships that can last a lifetime.
School Support Programme
School can be challenging for any child, but particularly for young carers. Because of their duties at home, young carers may find it difficult to complete homework, get to school on time or attend regularly. If they’re worried about a relative, they may struggle to concentrate in class and may need to contact home at frequent intervals throughout the day.
It’s important that school staff are aware of a young carer’s circumstances so that they can support them to overcome these obstacles. MYTIME's School Support Programme exists to raise awareness of young carers within their school communities, to help schools identify and more effectively support young carers and, ultimately, to ensure that young carers have everything they need to be happy and successful in their education.
Employability Programme
Finally, the charity's Employability Programme is designed to support young carers of ages 18-25 who are currently neither working nor studying. Some young carers may find it difficult to find their way into further education or employment if their caring responsibilities take up much of their time, or if they’ve left school without many qualifications. MYTIME work with young adult carers such as these to help them identify and access a job or further education course which both interests them and fits around their caring role.
How do Frettens help?
Over the past couple of years, we have supported MYTIME in many different ways. For example, each member of staff is entitled to one day a year to spend volunteering for MYTIME, where they may assist in one of the charity's many programmes.
Outside of volunteering days, we have:
- Sponsored MYTIME for various events, such as their recent Anniversary Ball which raised over £20,000
- Taken part in their annual Corporate Championships, raising funds for young carers
- Walked 16 miles from Sandbanks to Hengistbury Head as part of MARCH4MYTIME
- Attended MYTIME's 2024 awards, where we won Corporate Fundraiser of the Year!
We will update this page and our social media pages as more fundraising events and activities are announced. We will aim to work with MyTime to raise funds and awareness of their excellent work. If you want to get involved at all, please contact events@frettens.co.uk.