Voices: Carers Trust

In our Voices series, we spotlight the stories and insights of the incredible organisations we support - those driving real change in the fight against poverty and trauma in Scotland. The latest group is Carers Trust, an organisation working to transform the lives of unpaid carers.

What is Carers Trust working to achieve?

Our vision is that unpaid carers are heard, they're valued, and they're supported. 

We want to ensure that every carer has access to a high-quality local carer support for themselves, and that no carer is being pushed into poverty or financial hardship due to their caring responsibilities. We want to ensure that every carer regardless of age or circumstance can live a fulfilling life alongside their caring responsibilities.

We do that in a number of ways as an organisation, whether that's through evidence-based work to test innovative solutions, or wider policy and influencing work to ensure that carers and carer support centres are given a voice and can champion for the change that is needed.

Where are you focusing your support right now?

Every year we host a Scottish Young Carers festival where we bring carers together for an annual residential event. It allows us to connect with young people and find out what’s it means to be a young carer in Scotland today.

Unsurprisingly, education comes up as a key issue every year that we run the festival, and this complements existing research that young carers struggle to balance education with caring responsibilities. It’s an issue that really matters to young carers and we know that there is more that we can do in Scotland to ensure that carers can fully participate in education.

We are focusing on programmes that test solutions to make education a genuine pathway out of poverty for young carers, including delivering Care Aware training to student and probationary teachers and hosting a digital education hub; rolling out the Young Carers in Schools Challenge to embed simple, effective support in schools; driving strategic policy work shaped directly by young carers; developing our Caring is Learning programme with test‑and‑learn sites piloting targeted interventions; and supporting a Young Carers Education Expert Panel to co‑design national resources and campaigns that promote early identification and sustained support across all educational transitions. 

How do poverty and trauma figure in your work?

We know that poverty exacerbates existing barriers, and that young carers face additional costs linked to caring such as transport to appointments, lack of access to respite and limited study space at home. Some carers also feel the need to work part-time alongside school and caring responsibilities and many worry about the cost of living. It’s estimated that there are one million unpaid carers in the UK, so there is a real challenge in terms of what we are doing to change the system.

Young carers also face additional challenges when it comes to accessing and engaging with education due to caring responsibilities. Many are the first in their family to access further or higher education, without access to guidance or informal support networks. However, studies do show that having education acts as preventative effect to poverty, and we know that simple changes, flexibility and the right support and the right time can empower carers to remain and thrive in education.

The COVID-19 pandemic also intensified existing inequalities. Caring roles often increased, school attendance became more disrupted, and anxiety levels rose. Some young carers are still experiencing the long-term impacts of that period, particularly around confidence, transitions, and engagement.

At the same time, the pandemic demonstrated how vital local carer services are. Practitioners adapted rapidly - delivering doorstep support, wellbeing packages and remote check-ins. It reinforced the importance of well-resourced, flexible local support.

We also recognise that trauma can be layered. Caring for someone with a mental health condition or problematic substance use can bring stigma, making it harder to seek support and identify as a carer. For many young people, caring has simply always been a ‘normal’ part of their life too, and if you have been caring from a young age, you may not have the language to identify yourself as a carer. This is why identification cannot rely solely on self-disclosure. There must be shared responsibility across schools, health professionals and community practitioners.

How can funders support your work?

There are three key areas where we think funders can make a significant difference:

 1. Multi-year funding
Systems change takes time. Multi-year funding such as four, five or more years, allows us to test solutions, adapt in real time, build evidence and influence policy. It enables momentum and sustained learning rather than short-term pilots that cannot fully embed change.


2. Flexibility
Meaningful co-design requires time and resource. We know that we will not have all the answers at application stage and that’s ok. If we want lived experience to genuinely shape programmes, funding must allow for flexibility in delivery, resources for participation, translation and accessibility support, adaptation when caring responsibilities limit attendance or engagement.

3. Collaborative learning spaces
We have seen real value in networking and learning events when funders create space for genuine collaboration, rather than competition. It’s valuable for us to connect with organisations who are possibly testing new ways of working or working with different cohorts of people. For us, sharing our learning and the challenges we are experiencing too is valuable. It’s important for us all to think about what we can do collectively to bring about change.

What changes would you like to see in the next five years?

At a practical level, we want to see significantly improved early identification of young carers, particularly in primary school.

Current recording systems dramatically underestimate the number of young carers and without identification, support cannot follow. Our research suggests that as high as one in five young people in a classroom have a caring responsibility. Identification is where we want to build momentum so that more young people can be supported.  

We would also like to see consistent understanding of young carers across all education practitioners and strong, sustained partnerships between schools, local carer services and national organisations.

What long-term system changes would best address the issues?

Ultimately, we need a shift from the reliance on individual goodwill to structural change and accountability. We also need continued, sustained support and listening to young carers and young adult carers to shape policy and practice. 

That means:

  • Universal training and awareness for professionals.
  • Integrated data and recording systems.
  • Ring-fenced, sustainable funding for local carer services.
  • Education systems designed with flexibility and inclusion at their core.
  • Recognition that educational journeys are not always linear, and that alternative pathways must be accessible and respected.
  • Most importantly, it means embedding the voices of carers in decision-making at every level.

Caring is widespread. It looks different across cultures, communities and families. Systems must reflect that complexity and respond with flexibility, dignity and fairness. No one should be disadvantaged because they care.