Going to my local young carers centre was the best decision of my life

I’m Brooke, I’m 13 years old and I care for my little brother who has the metabolic disorder Phenylketonuria and autism.

For me, being a young carer is all mainly taking care of my brother when my dad’s tired and needs a minute to himself. My brother is seven and he just can’t be left alone without something happening, so I have to step in. It can also mean preparing his special food and looking after him more generally. My dad sometimes needs care too.

Like with a lot of carers my age, that can affect school too. I’m not always that good at handing in homework on time. That’s because anything that’s assigned for me to do at home is hard for me because I need to focus on caring at the same time. Sometimes teachers don’t always understand about that side of my life. It’s something lots of young carers experience. But when we’re supported, that can make a massive difference to our lives.

Caring can take a toll to be honest, and I was really anxious at the start of last year. When I went to Falkirk and Clackmannanshire Carers Centre, which is a part of the Carers Trust network, for the first time I was quite worried anxious about that too. I didn’t know anyone else there except for one person, a friend I knew from high school. I was getting bullied at that point, but when I went there, I felt like I could finally relax a bit.

From then on, I started relaxing more and more. It just eased me into becoming a much happier person. It meant I could be myself and no one could judge me because all the other young people there are going through similar experiences. I honestly think that going to that centre for the first time was the best decision of my life.

The support Carers Trust and its network provide carers like Brooke is made possible thanks to funds raised by players of People’s Postcode Lottery.