7. A lost generation
Resolution submitted by the RCN Ethics Forum
That this meeting of RCN Congress asks RCN Council to lobby government to end the scandal where children are expected to be the main carer for a dependent parent or sibling
Report on this debate
Congress agreed to ask RCN Council to press the Government to end the scandal where young children are expected to be the main carer for a dependent parent or sibling. Proposing the resolution, Paul Wainwright of the Ethics Forum gave Congress some figures showing that many thousands of children in this country find themselves in this position. We don’t condone child labour any more, he said, but children in this situation are equally victims of abuse.
In the end, the vote was decisive; although some members tried to persuade Congress to defer voting, on the grounds that the resolution, although well intentioned, was badly worded.
David Harding-Price, from North Lincs, said he was uncomfortable with the word ‘expected’. Making it unlawful to expect children to care for dependent relatives would only drive the problem underground, he argued. The answer was to provide fully funded services. June Clark agreed, and proposed a procedural motion not to take a vote but to refer the matter to Council. However, this procedural motion was outvoted.
Among those speaking in favour of the resolution was Jane Coad, who said it was not about children supplementing care, but whether children as young as five should have to perform onerous or intimate tasks. Marcelle de Sousa said the UN convention on the rights of the child was designed to support children’s development – which is put at risk when children are forced to be the main carer.
| For | 357 | 94.44% |
|---|---|---|
| Against | 21 |
5.56% |
| Yes |
92 |
95.8% |
|---|---|---|
| No | 4 | 4.2% |
Background
In 2004 it was estimated that the UK had just over one million children caring for relatives unable to look after themselves (BBC, 2004), thereby saving the Treasury £57 billion a year. As carers, these children frequently miss out on many of the normal activities of childhood, such as being able to go out to play, go on school trips (or even, in some cases, attend school) or take part in other organised activities.
The UN Convention on the rights of the child (United Nations Children’s Fund, 1989) emphasises governments’ responsibilities to protect the welfare of children. Specifically, it recognises the right of the child to rest and leisure, to engage in play and recreational activities appropriate to their age, to participate freely in cultural life and the arts, and to be protected from economic exploitation and from performing any work that is likely to be hazardous or to interfere with the child's education, or be harmful to the child's health or physical, mental, spiritual, moral or social development.
In Scotland, young carers can request a carer’s assessment, under the Community Care and Health Act (Scotland) 2002, (Scottish Executive, 2002) and can also obtain a ‘child in need’ assessment under the Children Act (Scotland) 1995. (Scottish Executive, 1995).The Scottish Government is currently investing £183,000 to develop a national young carer forum, which aims to give young carers a national voice and raise their profile within Scottish society. If this initial event is successful, funding will continue to make this forum an annual event.
By June 2008 the Welsh Assembly Government intends to ‘develop a tool kit to help Social Services, Education and National Health Service organisations to audit and improve local policies and practice for identifying and engaging with young carers’ (Welsh Assembly, 2007).
In Northern Ireland, the DHSSPS strategy document Caring for carers: recognising, valuing and supporting the caring role (Department of Health, Social Services and Public Safety, 2006) states, ‘…as a general principle a sufficient level of service should be provided to the ill or disabled person so as to prevent young people from having to take on inappropriate levels of responsibility for providing care.’ However, the emphasis in the strategy is upon supporting the caring role of children and young people, rather than phasing it out.
Young carers represent a comparatively unseen group within our society. Their existence, their needs and strategies for promoting the welfare of young carers demands discussion by appropriate professional groups.
References and further reading
British Broadcasting Corporation (2004) Caring for the child carers, London: BBC (BBC Online News, 9 October 2004). Available from: http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/health/3720790.stm (Accessed 31 January 2008) (Internet)
Department of Health, Social Services and Public Safety (2006) Caring for carers: recognising, valuing and supporting the caring role, Belfast: DHSSPS.
Available from: www.dhsspsni.gov.uk/ec-dhssps-caring-for-carers.pdf [see how to access PDF files]
(Accessed 31 January 2008) (Internet)
Scottish Executive (2002) Community Care and Health (Scotland) Act 2002, London: Stationery Office. Available from: www.opsi.gov.uk/legislation/scotland/acts2002/asp_20020005_en_6
(Accessed 31 January 2008) (Internet)
Scottish Executive (1995) Children (Scotland) Act 1995, London: Stationery Office.
Available from: www.opsi.gov.uk/acts/acts1995/Ukpga_19950036_en_1
(Accessed 31 January 2008) (Internet).
United Nations Children’s Fund (1989) Convention on the rights of the child, New York: UNICEF. Available from: www.unicef.org/crc
Welsh Assembly (2007) Carers’ strategy for Wales: action plan 2007, Cardiff: WA.
Available from: http://wales.gov.uk/topics/health/publications/socialcare/carerpublications/carersactionplan?lang=en (Accessed 31 January 2008) (Internet).