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Finley is 10 years old and is a young carer for his mum, Emily. Emily suffers from various health conditions including rheumatoid arthritis and fibromyalgia and relies on Finley’s support with day-to-day activities.

Finley doesn’t recognise himself as being a young carer. To him, he just thinks what he does is what all children do for their parents. Here, Finley describes a typical day in his life:

“I get myself and my 5-year old brother, Noah up in the morning and go and make our breakfasts. If mum’s having a difficult day then I often have to help her dress. She can struggle to put her socks on when she can’t bend properly and can find things like buttons and clasps difficult to do up when her hands are particularly bad.

Throughout the day when I’m not at school I will fetch and carry things to Mum to save her having to get up. I’ll also make her a cup of tea if she’s feeling particularly worn out.

I do chores around the home too, things like shifting the washing baskets around the houses so that Mum doesn’t have to pick them up and putting the washing on. I have also started to cook more and make dinners from time-to-time. Mum and Dad have also been teaching me some first aid so I can help with that if there’s a problem at home.”

Carer Support Wiltshire helps many young carers like Finley. Call us on 0800 181 4118 for information. You can also visit our website for young adult carers at yacbook.co.uk.

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