Young Carers in Early Childhood

The research

Voice narratives of young carers in early childhood in the UK.

The approach

Storytelling as a way of finding out: children, families and the professionals around them share their experiences through written narratives, poems or drawings.

What the research asks

  1. What factors influence dominant representations of young carers in early childhood within the broader scope of young carer research?
  2. What are the barriers faced by young carers in early childhood and their families to accessing assessment and support?
  3. What is life like for young carers in early childhood living in the UK?

What the research is finding

  1. The youngest carers are missing from the evidence.

    A scoping review searched research published from 2014 to 2024 and found no studies of young carers aged 0 to 5 that met its criteria. Their voices and experiences are absent from the literature.

    For practice

    Further research is needed to better inform whole family support in young carer policy and practice.

    Young Carers in Early Childhood: How Are Young Carers Represented in Broader Literature and What Factors Influence Dominant Representations of Young Carers in Early Childhood in the UK? Read the paper (Young Carers in Early Childhood: How Are Young Carers Represented in Broader Literature and What Factors Influence Dominant Representations of Young Carers in Early Childhood in the UK?)

  2. Professionals call them “the elephant in the room”.

    Focus groups with 24 professionals across the UK, recruited through the Carers Trust Young Carers Alliance, found that legal, ideological and economic power shapes who society expects young carers to be, and leaves frontline services disempowered.

    For practice

    The study recommends reviewing statutory needs assessments for young carers in England, and aligning early childhood and young carer policy so young carers’ rights are embedded from early childhood.

    Supporting Young Carers in Early Childhood: Mapping Power, Threat, Meaning, and Strengths: A PTMF-Informed Qualitative Study. Read the paper (Supporting Young Carers in Early Childhood: Mapping Power, Threat, Meaning, and Strengths: A PTMF-Informed Qualitative Study)

  3. Chances to identify them early are being missed.

    Drawing on the experiences of three families, including two each with a young carer aged four, the study found systemic and structural powers in the lives of young carers in early childhood.

    For practice

    Opportunities to prevent inappropriate caring roles, and for early identification and intervention, have been missed.

    Young Carers in Early Childhood: Exploring Experience with the Power Threat Meaning Framework. Read the paper (Young Carers in Early Childhood: Exploring Experience with the Power Threat Meaning Framework)

The team and partners

  • Carly Ellicott

    Principal investigator

  • Professor Helen Lloyd

    Director of Studies

  • Dr Alyson Norman

    Second supervisor

  • Felicity Dewsbery

    Expert supervisor, Pengreen Research Centre

    From Carly: the exact name of Felicity's organisation

  • Carers Trust UK

    Partner

University of Plymouth, Young Carers in Early Childhood programme page

The thesis

PhD thesis, University of Plymouth, forthcoming

Young carers in early childhood: A relational ontology of young children’s lived experiences of caregiving

Ellicott, C.

From Carly: the thesis title, and whether to show it before the viva