£35k for Scottish Young Carers

The Honeypot Children’s Charity is delighted to announce it has been awarded a £35,000 grant from the Shared Care Scotland Creative Breaks Fund, which is funded by the Scottish Government to provide breaks for unpaid carers.

This funding will support a new collaborative project between The Honeypot Children’s Charity and South Ayrshire Health and Social Care Partnership (SAHSCP), enabling many young carers from South Ayrshire to benefit from Residential Short Breaks and Memory Making or Bumble Days.

The initiative, titled Early Identification of and Short Breaks for Wee Carers, aims to reach and support children as young as four who are providing care for a loved one but are not currently supported by commissioned carers services. Many “hidden” young carers are first identified through their schools, often only once they reach a crisis point at around age 12. By engaging with schools and families earlier, this project will help identify and support children before their caring responsibilities begin to negatively impact their wellbeing, education, and future development.

Through consultation with children, individually and in groups, The Honeypot Children’s Charity and SAHSCP will co-design a programme of activities tailored to each child’s needs and preferences. These experiences will focus on improving mental health and wellbeing, giving Wee Carers the chance to rest, play, and make happy memories away from their caring duties.

Simmi Woodwal, Chief Executive at The Honeypot Children's Charity, said:

“We are absolutely delighted to have received this generous grant from the Shared Care Scotland Creative Breaks Fund. Early intervention is key to supporting young carers before they reach crisis point. By working closely with South Ayrshire Health and Social Care Partnership, we can ensure that more young carers are identified and given the opportunity to simply be children - to play, relax and experience the joy of childhood that every child deserves.”

Almost 1,200 young carers are known in South Ayrshire, yet around half are not registered with the local commissioned carers services. By identifying and supporting these children at an earlier stage, this partnership project aims to reduce the need for statutory intervention and improve long-term outcomes for vulnerable families.

Councillor Hugh Hunter, South Ayrshire’s Policy Lead for Health and Social Care, said:

“Securing this joint funding is a fantastic achievement and will make a real impact on young carers in South Ayrshire. Caring responsibilities add increased stress and pressure on anyone, in particular our younger carers, being able to offer residential breaks and memory making days allows them the opportunity to relax and enjoy their childhood. We would like to thank the Honeypot Children’s Charity who have played a vital role in not only securing this valuable funding, but for supporting delivery of a number of these activities in recent years, with some wonderful feedback from the young carers who have taken part”

For 30 years now, The Honeypot Children’s Charity has been supporting young carers aged 5–12 through a consistent, tailored programme of wrap-around support that includes short breaks and wellbeing services to help them build confidence, resilience, and brighter futures.

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