STH Patient Experience team take on the Sheffield 10k for Young Carers!

Sheffield Young Carers is a local charity that supports young carers and young people affected by familial substance use.  Its work aims to overcome these barriers to ensure these young people have the same chances to thrive as their peers.
 
Did you know that in every classroom in the UK, there are 3 young people helping to look after someone at home. In Sheffield alone there are approximately 7,000 young carers, that we know of. This significantly impacts their access to education, their health and well-being and social and recreational opportunities.
 
We (Anna and Aisling) are part of the Patient Experience and Engagement team at Sheffield Teaching Hospitals and as part of our work, we are responsible for work to ensure that carers are identified and supported. Unpaid Carers (family members, friends or neighbours who support someone to manage day-to-day activities) are an invisible workforce, and young carers can be especially difficult to identify. We have worked closely with the carers organisations in Sheffield for many years and have seen first-hand the difference the fantastic support offered by Sheffield Young Carers makes to young people and their families. We have signed up to the Sheffield Mutual 10k run on Sunday 28th September to raise funds for this incredible cause!
 
We are working together as a team to cross the finish line, raise valuable funds for some of the most vulnerable people in our community, and, importantly, increase awareness of young carers, the challenges they may experience and how to best support them.
To find out more about Sheffield Young Carers and the support they offer, please check out their website: sheffieldyoungcarers.org.uk/
 
Every donation helps, and anything you donate will go straight to supporting young carers in Sheffield, and will motivate us in our training and on the day! 
£15 could pay for two young people to relax and have fun on a swimming trip
£50 could help four young people to travel safely to and from their regular support group
£150 could enable one weekly support group to have a fun end of support celebration
£300 could help to train more GPs and professionals to identify and support young carers
£1000 could allow for young people and families to attend school holiday activities, free of charge. 
We are hoping to raise at least £300 between us but would be grateful for any donations to support the fantastic work done by SYC to be able to continue to support young people across Sheffield.
 
Thank you in advance for any support for our training and fundraising- you can follow us for updates on here!