What Carers Told Us
Forgotten Families – The Needs of Kinship Carers in Europe
Our project has interviewed over 180 kinship carers from across Europe. This is a small selection of what those grandparents, uncles and aunts told about being a kinship carer in Europe today.
They have told us that while they love the children they are looking after it isn’t always easy.
A carer from Romania told us:
“We do not have a washing machine – it’s so hard to wash the children’s clothes by hand; the children need a computer as all the other children from the community have.”
As well as financial difficulties, carers told us that they often feel lonely and that their health has suffered as a result of taking on caring responsibilities.
A Swedish carer told us:
“As a kinship carer you feel stigma. People look at you differently, as if there is something wrong with you or your family. People get very curious.”
They also spoke about their worries for the children, a Lithuanian grandparent said:
“The problems started after 11-12 years. Already at the age of 12 she began run from the school and is in bad company.”
We can already be sure that our project is making a difference, one Scottish carer said:
“I came here today feeling that I just wanted to give up and now that I have met these people here I have hope that things will change around for me.”
To read more about the needs of carers please read our full report.
