The Quilter Foundation

Quilter Foundation

Carers Trust and The Quilter Foundation partnership

Between 2018 – 2021, Carers Trust and The Quilter Foundation work on an ambitious partnership dedicated to transforming the lives of young carers aged 16-25 in the UK.

The Quilter Foundation donated a phenomenal £1 million, making a huge difference to the lives of 2,280 young carers. Quilter employees also dedicated more than 450 volunteer hours through skills workshops over the course of the partnership.

Together, we have helped young carers feel more confident and less isolated in their caring roles and supported them to make positive changes in their journey into adulthood.

The Quilter Foundation has helped to protect young carers’ futures and inspired long-term change through:

  • Inspiring Change grants, with the aim to improve the wellbeing and resilience of young carers, supporting them to achieve their aspirations.
  • Aspirations Fund grants, increasing access to employment, education or training opportunities.
  • A volunteering programme for Quilter employees.
  •  A Young Carers Steering Group, shaping and informing the partnership.

We were delighted that this partnership was nominated for a Charity Times award in 2021 for its positive impact.

How the Quilter partnership supported young carers in Perth & Kinross

Thanks to funding from the Quilter partnership, Perth & Kinross Association of Voluntary Service (PKAVS) Carers Hub has delivered 68 one-to-one sessions and 34 virtual groups through the Inspiring Change programme. A young carer fed back on the impact of this on their future aspirations:

“I am so grateful for your support. It gave me the opportunity to access funding to pay for courses that contributed to my application to medical school, without this funding I wouldn’t have gotten in. My caring role impacted my education and I left school with nothing. I am really grateful and really appreciative of your support.”

Quilter staff supporting young carers

In 2020, we launched our first ever virtual volunteering programme, including online workshops and one-to-one coaching or support sessions. Thanks to Quilter volunteers:

  • 97% of young people who attended a skills workshop said that the content will help them in the future.
  • 93% reported an increase in confidence.
  • 88% of Quilter volunteers felt their knowledge of carers increased.

"I can’t thank you all enough for letting me be part of the workshops and for all the new skills I learnt. It’s definitely an experience I won’t forget, and I now feel more confident for the future.”

Young adult carer

“Volunteering for Carers Trust is truthfully the most rewarding time I have spent within my role to date. Being able to engage and speak with young adult carers is hugely significant for me, as I used to be one myself. These people have lives and responsibilities that anyone who hasn't been in that situation would find very hard to truly understand and get their head around, and so being able to take time out of my day-to-day to speak with these remarkable individuals; and to offer any support, help or guidance that I can, is incredibly humbling.”
Quilter volunteer

Beyond fundraising

Quilter has always gone above and beyond to have a direct impact on young carers’ futures. For Young Carers Action Day 2021, Quilter CEO, Paul Feeney, recorded a special video message urging employers to do more to support young and young adult carers.

 

"Unpaid carers save the UK an astonishing £132bn a year. A figure that will most certainly grow as our society ages. Young people involved in the care of family members can feel isolated, struggle with mental health issues and tend to have poorer outcomes in education and employment. That’s not acceptable and we can do something about that. As part of our partnership Quilter plc employees will bring their passion and time to directly help young carers in their local communities through Carers Trust’s network.”
Paul Feeney, CEO, the Quilter Foundation and Chair of The Quilter Foundation

"We know that young adult carers are more likely to fall behind, be bullied and suffer from anxiety and depression. The impact of caring at this critical stage can severely impact their ability to prosper in adulthood. It’s amazing to have supported so many young adult carers already thanks to funds raised and time volunteered by Quilter employees. Funds raised for the partnership will continue to help us make a real difference to young carers' lives and achieve a step change in public understanding of caring responsibilities and attitudes towards young adult carers.”
Svetlana Kirov, Director of Fundraising, Carers Trust

New ways of working

Carers Trust continues to work closely with The Quilter Foundation. In 2022, The Quilter Foundation donated a £135,000 for our Young Carers Futures programme.

This builds on our previous work together and will support key strands of our work supporting young and young adult carers including:

  • Youth involvement
  • Education programmes
  • Employability & skills development
  • Dedicated policy focus on young carers issues
  • Strengthening our capacity

Keep up to date 

For updates on our work with The Quilter Foundation, keep an eye out on social media @CarersTrust, and @Quilter.

To find out more, or to get involved, please contact the Carers Trust Corporate Fundraising Team at corporate@carers.org.

Supporting Young Carers Action Day 2021

Find out how The Quilter Foundation got involved with Young Carers Action Day 2021.