To be honest, it was a surprise to me how well the hospice catered for my mum and all of us as a family. The hospice was not as I expected – it was a pleasant place to be at a difficult time.Family of a patient

All quotations are used with permission.

Young carers

People can be carers at any age – often a child or young person may be caring for their parent, grandparent or other relative.

People can be carers at any age. Often a child or young person may be caring for their parent, grandparent or other relative - there is help available to help you manage.

If you are a child looking after someone else you can ask your local authority social services team for a carer’s assessment in your own right.

Cheshire       www.cheshire.gov.uk
Manchester   www.manchester.gov.uk
Salford          www.salford.gov.uk
Stockport      www.stockport.gov.uk
Trafford         www.trafford.gov.uk

Macmillan Cancer Support Youth Line
 An advice line for people between 12 and 21 years old, on 0808 808 0800 (9am to 10pm, Monday to Friday). Email youthline@macmillan.org.uk.

Young Carers Net
 www.youngcarers.net is a site for young people and has a wide range of information available. It also offers discussion boards and a chatroom so that you can pick the brains of others to see how they’ve handled things. There is an ‘agony aunts page’ too. All of these can help with solid support and help you feel less isolated by what is happening to you.

riprap
 www.riprap.org.uk is a site that can help you cope when a parent has cancer and you’ll find stories from other young people going through the same situations as you are. You’ll also find information and tips to help you understand and deal with what is going on in your family.

Siblinks
 www.siblinks.org offers emotional, social and practical support to young people between 13 and 25 years old who have, or have had, someone in the family affected by cancer.

Time To Care
 www.timetocare.org.uk has a comprehensive guide for young carers which can be downloaded.

Winston’s Wish
www.winstonswish.org.uk is a site specifically for teenagers. It has been set up for people whose parent’s have cancer but it has support and information applicable to others.  There is an online blog to read and see how other young people are handling things or you could join to share what is happening to you.

Support for young carers in Central Manchester, Salford, Stockport and Trafford

Central Manchester
 There are monthly meetings of the Manchester Young Carers Forum where you can discuss with others what is happening to you and what support could be available. Contact them on 0161 629 9859.

24/7 Young Carers Project
 This project provides fun activities and days out. Contact them on 0161 881 8116.

Salford Salford Young Carers Project provides one to one support as well as group support. They offer funactivities day trips and residential weekends too. Contact them on 0161 833 0217.

Stockport Signpost for carers Young carers Programme
 This programme offers support via group work, occasional one to one support and residential breaks. There are day trips in the summer and Easter school holidays. For more information phone 0161 456 2006.

Trafford Young Carers Centre
They offer group sessions in term time and after school, plus day trips during school holidays. Contact them on 0161 972 0090.