Case Study 1 (West)

Case Study 1 (West)

Girl in Northwich group was referred to Cheshire Young Carers by a health visitor. Girl’s mother and stepfather both have a history of depression, post-traumatic stress disorder, personality disorder and bipolar. She is a 14 year old girl who lives with her mother, stepfather, 18 month old brother and a two week old sister. They live in rural Cheshire and she attends Helsby High School. Her stepfather is ex-army and his PTSD is associated with his time in service. Her mother has experienced domestic abuse in previous relationships.

She is very aware of her parent’s mental health and has only ever known them to need help. Life has been made more difficult in recent years with the birth of her younger brother and more recently a new born baby within the home. This has put extra strain on the family, which has meant she has picked up more caring responsibilities for her siblings. She reports that her parents spend a lot of time in bed, which results in her having to look after the two children. She accesses counselling support twice a month where she can offload her feelings and explore her thoughts and coping strategies. She also admits that though her caring role does not always impact on her punctuality at school, once in school, her anxiety and stresses can build and this then manifests itself into being headaches and sickness, which then results in spending a number of days going home ill. She recognises that this is not good for her education and finds it frustrating as she is very ambitious.

She is being supported to access a support service with a tailored approach, factoring in her needs, wants and expectation.

Having access and attending Cheshire Young Carers session fortnightly where she can build up an additional social circle, access peer support, try new experiences, take part in activities that will help develop her confidence, self-esteem and communication skills.
She will also be eligible for additional activities and events throughout the year above and beyond the regular sessions.
Her family being supported in completing of relevant forms to ensure their daughter has access to extra levels of support with her caring role.

She will receive support with transport to enable her access to the session.
She can access and apply for the ‘Young Persons Personal Budgets’.