News

The annual event, organised by the Carers Trust, aims to raise awareness of the incredible contribution young carers make to their communities and families. It is an opportunity for all of us to take action and help these children get the support they need to live happy and healthy lives.

We are extremely proud to announce that we will be receiving support from Michaela Wyatt, finalist in the International Junior Miss UK, which will take place in Wiltshire on February the 19th and 20th.

Before Christmas, we had a Zoom call with Jaiden, who previously featured in one of our videos. We spoke about Covid and lockdown restrictions, the boys’ experience of caring for an ill mother during this difficult time, their family life and their hopes and dreams for the future.

Last year, we launched the Honeypot Wellbeing Fund under the umbrella of our Wrap-Round service to provide young carers with a grant for life’s essential items. We spoke to our Director of Strategic Development about the application process and the impact our new service has made on their lives.

Bethannie, aged 22, was referred to Honeypot through her local young carers group when she was nine years old. She has recently got back in-touch with Honeypot to share her experiences of her Respite Breaks with Honeypot, growing up as a young carer, and her hopes for the future.

On the 8th of December, we hosted Honeypot 25th anniversary Carol Concert at Romsey Abbey in Hampshire. In retrospect of our cancelled events in 2021, we were delighted to be able to host the concert this year and were pleased to welcome over two hundred local supporters to the Abbey.

In 2019, we introduced a Social and Emotional Learning programme (SEAL) for young carers in Hampshire as part of our collaboration with Bank of America. Through successful fundraising, we have now been able to launch the programme in Wales too in cooperation with local schools.

Between 30th November and 3rd December 2021 we ran our biggest ever fundraising campaign to date. In total we raised over £1,120,500, including over £330,000 in online donations, and almost £790,000 in offline donations.

Originally from Hampshire, Megan was first referred to Honeypot in 2008 when she was nine years old. Today she works as a teacher in the North East. We talked to her about her experience as a young carer, her time with Honeypot, and how her childhood experiences shape her work as a teacher today.

In August, after 16 long months, we finally resumed our traditional service and re-opened our respite houses in Hampshire and Wales. Over the past five weeks, we welcomed almost 80 young carers across both sites for a long-awaited residential weekend break.