Young guns

Power to Care Radio continues to amplify the voices and lived experiences of carers—creating space for honest conversations that are too often overlooked.

In this episode, host Kristine Rawlinson is joined by a very special guest—her daughter, Eloise—for a deeply personal conversation about life as a young carer. Together, they explore what it means to grow up balancing the everyday realities of being a teenager alongside the added responsibilities and emotional complexities of caring.

Eloise shares her perspective on navigating school, friendships, identity, and independence, while also supporting a family member. This episode shines a light on the unique challenges young carers face—often invisible, often unspoken—and the resilience they develop along the way.

Episode 3 is both a powerful insight and a gentle reminder: young carers are not just “helpers” in the background—they are young people with their own needs, aspirations, and voices that deserve to be heard.

Power to Care Radio continues its mission to ensure carers of all ages are seen, supported, and valued.

Transcript

SPEAKER_01 0:58

I'm Christine Rawlinson, and today you're stuck with me. Michelle Willoughby's on a break, but I'm joined by a very special carer, a young carer, who's going to be our guest. But before we introduce her, I'd like to acknowledge the traditional owners of the land that we're broadcasting from today and pay my respects to elders past and present. I also want to acknowledge any carers who are listening today, especially young carers. So much of what you do happens quietly and it happens in the background, often without recognition. This show exists because your lives, your care, and your experiences matter. Now today we're going to have a very special topic, and it's about growing up, caring. Last week we talked about how when we become a carer, it's not something that we aspire to be, it's not something that we have a choice about becoming. And for today's young carer, this is something that she probably doesn't even have a remember a memory of a time when she wasn't a carer, because young carers often just grow up not knowing a life where they're not a young carer. So I'd like to introduce Eloise, who I must admit, with full disclosure, I have a very close and personal relationship with. How do I tell them? Oh, spoiler. Spoiler. I roped you in, didn't I? I told you I wasn't going to feed you tonight unless you came on. It's been a long time since I fed you. Is that why you've got scurvy? Oh God. I didn't know about that. Amongst your other ailments. Um anyway, I'm very proud that Eloise has um bucked the trend in being a moody teenager and she has agreed to come on today and be part of the program because I think it's important that she waves the flag for the many, many, many young carers that are out there. And I should have got my stats together. But we know that 12% of the population in general are young carers, so that'd be a pretty, pretty darn huge population of uh people around who are young people. Do you know many people who are young carers? Yeah, I know a few.

SPEAKER_06 3:33

Um going through a lot of private schools. I probably haven't met that many through school, but I know a few from uh around towns and friends of friends.

SPEAKER_01 3:44

Do you think it has a difference? It it depends which postcode you come from, whether you're a carer or not, or do you think people are more private about their situation? They might be a bit ashamed that they might have a little bit of a s shall I say dysfunction in their family because they're maybe from a more um affluent background.

SPEAKER_06 4:04

Yeah, I feel like that does play a part. There is growing up as it a little bit of shame to be different, and definitely a little bit of shame to be a carer.

SPEAKER_01 4:14

So when you meet people, do you tell them that you're a carer? Is that how you introduce yourself? Is that how you identify yourself?

SPEAKER_06 4:23

It is weird to hide from people if I'm a carer, because it's such a big part of who I am, and my family is such a big part of who I am and who I've become. So no, I often uh I don't just outwardly say it, but uh I do let I do let the people know.

SPEAKER_01 4:45

You do get outed sometimes when you don't want to be though, don't you? Yes. I I I have a recollection of a car trip the other day when you'd forgotten to tell someone and we're in the car, and as we were pulling into the car, you said, Oh, I forgot to tell you something. I need to maybe give you a bit of a uh a bit of warning about what to expect.

SPEAKER_06 5:07

Yeah.

SPEAKER_01 5:08

Yeah. So um sometimes you just need to um prepare people for some different and interesting things they might encounter encounter while in our house of fun. Um, but what how do people mainly react to it?

SPEAKER_06 5:25

Um well people don't see it a lot and don't really know how to react, but for the most part I've met a lot of support from people my age. I'm not gonna become friends with someone who I think wouldn't support it. So I do get a lot of uh love from it, from my friends around the topic of it.

SPEAKER_01 5:46

Now we're probably talking in code, because we know what we're talking about. And there might be people who are listening to uh Power to Care Radio on 94.9 FM and they've got no idea what the two of us are talking about. So can you tell us a little bit about your story, Eloise? When did you become a carer?

SPEAKER_06 6:05

I was uh seven or eight uh around that time, and w we were on a camping trip and my father became quite quite ill on said camping trip with Minnetokel. Um and went into hospital. We were told that we might have to say goodbye to him there, which was a big scare for for young me and my older brother, who was 12, 11, uh at the time. So that that happened. Uh he was in hospital for quite a long time and in rehabs.

SPEAKER_01 6:51

And what happened to him because of the meninja cockle disease? How did he change from the dad who he was to the dad he became? Good shout.

SPEAKER_06 7:01

Um he got six sites of brain im injury uh from strokes and he had his legs and fingers amputated. So very very changed man. So how did life change at home? Um well when when I was very young, it was small, subtle changes that didn't bother an eight-year-old. Um but it it changed how people treated me, how adults treated me a lot. I noticed at schools, um and with friends of parents, there was there was an air of pity around it instead of instead of support at times, which was very belittling, especially for a kid who just wanted to be a kid. A very extroverted kid who just wanted to be a kid. Um we definitely have a very different home experience than other people. People come to our house and we don't we don't do a lot of things that they do. Um we aren't as much of a token family.

SPEAKER_01 8:20

I'm just are you thinking about the the friend who was worried about us sitting about her interrupting our sitting down for dinner last night? And we both went, ew. We had dinner. We don't sit down and do that. We've got someone with an eating disorder and someone with a brain injury. Does not mesh well. Yeah, that does not mesh well for the four of us sitting at a table together for a family meal. It's not a good combination. So it's more or less just um get your nourishment how you can, when you can, and hope for the best, really. Um it is not it is not a good opportunity for a social chit-chat meal time. So um, yes, we do differ a bit from the traditional nuclear family, but we've we've um we've we've managed to stick it out. So you realised pretty much from the time that dad was in hospital that life was different.

SPEAKER_06 9:14

Yeah. Um I didn't know what to expect. I didn't have a a grasp around a lot of things at at seven years old. Um but I did notice a lot of of of different things and things I I missed out on or things that people didn't understand that I did. So yes, I feel like my life life changed a lot um in my childhood.

SPEAKER_01 9:41

And I suppose going and staying at other friends' houses and seeing how their families function probably you can compare see the difference and similarities between how families function. Um yeah, that's that's a reminder.

SPEAKER_06 10:00

Yeah. Yeah, definitely.

SPEAKER_01 10:04

Yeah, okay. And you know, I I'm not a very good um person to help you with that because for me it's all very normal now. So um, yes, I can just affirm that I understand how you feel. All right, now we don't have Pete with us today, and he usually helps us. Now, my daughter who's with us today is a very famous to-be musician. So, Eloise, can you stand in for Pete and do the fanfare that we do? Uh pretend to do a trumpet with your a bugle with your hand and do a fanfare. Do you know how to do that?

SPEAKER_06 10:39

No.

SPEAKER_01 10:40

I'm gonna have to do it then, and you know what my musical talent is?

SPEAKER_06 10:44

Like that.

SPEAKER_01 10:45

That's it. Exactly. So our jargon of the day is fanfare. That's it. Hidden carer. What do you think a hidden carer is?

SPEAKER_06 10:59

Um, not recognized or hide it from people, or feel some shame about being a carer.

SPEAKER_01 11:06

So that's the sort of stuff we were talking about, right? So we estimate that about 12% of the population out there are carers. But I can tell you now, and some of you might be driving while you're listening to this, and you might nod your head, because I know that I've spoken to people who've who will say, I'm not a carer, I'm just a wife, mother, husband, brother, neighbour, mate, whatever, grandparent. But then you say, How many hours a week, son, daughter? How many hours a week are you supporting them and what sort of things are you doing? And then they say, Well, I just have them stay over my house four nights a week. I help them with their medication, I help them with their shopping, I drive them to their weekly doctor's appointments. Then they list, you know, they list off all of these things. And imagine if those helpful things were taken away. That person would be pretty stuffed. And also, that's then what adds up to if unpaid carers didn't do those things, that's where we get up to that $76 billion replacement value by the federal government. So that's what we're worth. So there is a huge percentage of hidden carers amongst the young folk. So why do you do you know why that would be? Children. Why do you well why do you think young carers are hidden?

SPEAKER_06 12:41

They don't know what it is.

SPEAKER_01 12:42

Well, they wouldn't know any better, would they? They don't know any different. So um I remember I uh soon after Dad came out of hospital. Like I say that dad and I were in hospital together. You didn't see me much over those six months that he was in hospital. Um, friends took me out to the theatre one night, and Sam would have been twelve, and you would have been nine by that stage, because you know you'd had birth birthdays in between. And um I was just sitting down to dinner before the show, and Sam rang me, and I was um schooling him on the gabapentin to give dad, which is a very strong medication, and other strong medication to give dad, 12-year-old. Now you've given him strong medication like that as well, haven't you? Yeah.

SPEAKER_06 13:30

I've patched him up when he's fallen over while he's while he's yelling at me.

SPEAKER_01 13:37

So, you know, there are there are things that you guys do that you probably just do without acknowledging that these are actually really quite skilled tasks. And even the fact that you you know it's second nature for you to quickly unfold and fold the wheelchair before we put it in the back of the car. You know which latches to pull and all that sort of stuff, and um the thing that he he puts on his wrist to help him with his uh cutlery and to use that sort of stuff. So that's just you being a helpful kid, but what it is is that you're a carer. So because you say, Oh, it's just that my dad has a disability, you don't necessarily call yourself a hidden carer. So if you're not calling yourself a carer, you're not reporting yourself to the government or to carer support services, um, and that doesn't help people to know that the need is out there and what supports are needed to get support. Um what people are need are needing supports. Now, I think I'm going on a talk fest, and I think it's time for Eloise to give us a song break.

SPEAKER_06 14:55

Sure.

SPEAKER_01 14:56

Okay, so do you know what song you're going to choose?

SPEAKER_06 14:59

Yes, I do. Okay. So the song I've chosen is Dreamer by Mao. Mao is an artist from Queensland. He is absolutely amazing. Like he his songwriting is so beautiful and so deep, and I relate to it. And I was texting him the other day asking if he was coming to Melbourne, and he sent me his entire unreleased album. My goat, love you, Mao. Um, so this song Dreamer, I think it's beautiful. So yeah, I'll play it for you.

SPEAKER_01 15:32

Looking forward to it.

SPEAKER_06 17:48

Thank you, I know my stuff.

SPEAKER_01 17:50

Well, you were taught by an expert, weren't you? I know so much about music. All right, so now back into uh the topic. You're with 94.9 Main FM Power to Care Radio, and um you've got Christine Rawlinson here filling in. Uh I'm well, I'm I'm doing a solo job today. I'm usually partnered by Michelle Willoughby, um, but I'm I'm I'm I'm free-falling today, doing it solo, and I'm joined by my uh lovely daughter, who is our very special guest, Eloise, who is representing young carers across the nation, so don't stuff it up.

SPEAKER_06 18:32

That's a lot of pressure.

SPEAKER_01 18:34

Yeah. So given I've uh put the pressure on you, I just want you to reflect a bit on being a young carer and how things are at home and the impact that has on life at school. So think about how other kids at school, how they are coping at school, what their home life is like, the impact that their home life has on their school life. Have a think about your home life and the impact that it has on your school life. What what's the difference do you think?

SPEAKER_06 19:14

Well, I was at school a lot less than uh I should have been in 2025. Um, and that was by part from being so exhausted with all the work, but also having endometriosis. Um but I noticed um at school that people always I guess found it easier than me to just get there when I don't get a lot of alone time in the day. I find that as a teenager, specifically a teenage girl, that alone time is really important to me and and school and coming home and the mental load and with being around like the people I care for. It's like non-stop.

SPEAKER_01 20:10

Well, I actually had uh um you know, you've heard this story many times, but um I was taken into the principal's office at your school because they were very worried about your school attendance and they wanted me to quantify what your caring duties were because they really thought that you were rotting the system by saying I'm a young carer and this is having an impact on my capacity to really get sleep and get to school in in the morning. Whereas the stats clearly, clearly, clearly show us that there is a direct correlation between being a young carer and your capacity to actually be engaged at school, succeed at school, and to then um be able to really to do well in paid employment because you don't have those same opportunities as other people because you're you're being pulled in so many directions. So I think there was a bit of gaslighting going on.

SPEAKER_06 21:20

Definitely. People didn't really understand Yeah, I felt very pressured to make my home life definable and understandable for people who haven't well lived like I have. And I know that all carers and all people have different different stories and different ways that they experience one their teenage life and their life altogether and their home life. But what am I saying?

SPEAKER_01 21:50

Well, I suppose one of the questions that I was asked was what's Eloise's caring routine? What is her routine as a carer? And that's Kept me awake at night because I wished I'd have had, you know, um that's why we're called power to care, because we want carers to have more power to say, hold the phone. This is actually none of your business to ask us that. The fact is, there is no routine necessarily to Eloise's life. That is the whole problem. You don't know what to expect from one day to the other when you wake up or when you come home from school, you don't know what's going on. We we all um get the the heebie jeebies when an ambulance goes past because we don't know what to expect. There's all sorts of stuff going on in our in our um our little neck of the woods, isn't there?

unknown 22:51

Definitely.

SPEAKER_01 22:53

And what about friends? Did you ever feel a bit strange about inviting friends back to the house or did you ever miss out on opportunities to catch up with friends because of what was going on at home?

SPEAKER_06 23:06

I've definitely cancelled plans before. Either because my mood is so damp because of uh my home life. Or um I used to be a bit weird about inviting people over, and if they were over that and they couldn't go so high less now I get a bit like worried about telling people how they react because even if they react weirdly, it's not like I'm gonna change anything about it. Um but I do every now and then get a bit sad that my home life is so different than my friends. So that's held me back a lot in friendships, I guess.

SPEAKER_01 24:00

But I suppose you're also getting to the stage now where you're forging your own identity and you're you very much have achieved your own things that have that have got nothing to do with your role as a carer, and you're recognized for that.

SPEAKER_06 24:15

So when I was younger, I was worried that I was going to be defined by being a carer and by my dad, like in school and in uni and in my life outside of that, that I was just gonna be a girl who whose dad almost died, or like that I couldn't put myself out there because that's what people would always see me by when I know now that it isn't.

SPEAKER_01 24:45

Yeah, that's that's tough, isn't it? So I suppose now now you just um get people to know you and then they get they get to get the extra salad dressing of the uh the nice little extra bits of our life as they get to know you. Knowing that, you've lived a pretty full life for somebody who's only 16.

SPEAKER_06 25:13

Definitely.

SPEAKER_01 25:14

So do you feel older than the same people, people the same age as you?

SPEAKER_06 25:18

Like I'll meet people and they think I'm anywhere from two years to ten years older than I actually am after talking to me. Even though I I definitely look 16, I'm quite short and quite quite youthful. But um I feel very mature, but sometimes it's a bit annoying when I'm feeling like people my age don't see things the way I do. Or I I hang out with people older than me and I feel seen by them, but yet they still see me as someone younger at times.

SPEAKER_01 25:53

Oh well, I I do know because I I am your chaperone at licensed venues when you perform, and I do see people talking to you, and I go up to them and tap them on the shoulder and say, hmm, she's 16.

SPEAKER_06 26:06

I do that too.

SPEAKER_01 26:10

Um but that's because they've seen you sing and perform, and so they think that you're much older than what you are. How do you feel when you are going out and having fun and doing things without your family? Do you ever feel guilty about leaving people behind that you should be doing stuff? You know, I'm not saying you should feel guilty, by the way. Don't feel guilty about not being guilty, but you know, is there anything that makes you feel guilty?

SPEAKER_06 26:40

That's a loophole. Um I guess sometimes being out feels like I'm getting to do things that you aren't or or that Sam can't, or that Dad can't. Give and take what I'm taking myself away from. Um sometimes I feel like something will happen while I'm gone. Or like I need to check up or really like tiptoe around leaving sometimes.

SPEAKER_01 27:18

It's a lot of big feelings and it it would be pretty exhausting to feel like that a lot. Um, you know, it's not it's not really a carefree existence.

SPEAKER_06 27:30

Carefree.

SPEAKER_01 27:31

Ah, see what we did there. I did that without without even knowing I did it. So thank you for picking up on that. So what do you think if you were to say how caring has shaped you, has it what do you think it has done for you as a person? Has it enhanced you in any way?

SPEAKER_06 27:51

I think I'm empathetic. Key word. I think I'm empathetic.

SPEAKER_01 27:56

You were all over it today.

SPEAKER_06 27:58

Um I think I'm understanding, which is kind of very similar to Hardworking, so let's go. Um mature. I think I think that's what I'm like.

SPEAKER_01 28:24

And I think I think, I think, I think we're we're talking very similarly right now. But carers are pretty good at spinning several plates at once. We are pretty good at doing lots of things at once. Because we have to, we have to multitask. And um you definitely get asked to do lots of things. And when your friends come over, they're quite surprised that I ask them to do things as well, because they I don't know if their parents are the same, but it's uh anyone in our house, they get lots of jobs to do because there are always jobs to do.

SPEAKER_06 29:03

They don't find it a big deal, they're just being they're just being nice.

SPEAKER_01 29:07

That's good. That's good. All right, so it's time for another fanfare. So get the bugle out, will you please? Off you go. Really? Come on, enthusiasm, do it with feeling. Okay, thank you. We are now up to the Carers Who Do Not Care Club. Now, I really had to get out my phone and show Eloise a video, or the young folk call it a reel, of the We Do Not Care Club, which we are blatantly copying here. Um I'm going to start and you can think of some things to copy, okay? We do not care that you think we are so mature. We've just had to do stuff that are beyond our years.

SPEAKER_06 30:03

Yeah.

SPEAKER_01 30:04

This is radio, not video. You can't pull faces like that.

SPEAKER_03 30:09

I don't I don't know.

SPEAKER_01 30:11

Here, I've written down some for you. So here you can pretend to pretend it's your idea.

SPEAKER_06 30:21

You take this one.

SPEAKER_01 30:23

Okay. We don't care that you tell us how brilliant you think we are. Why don't you just give us some bloody help rather than telling us yeah, or money? Yeah. What about how do I put that just Oh, she's she's really not on board with the we do not care. We do not care if you have a certain quota of the number of days students should attend your school. You need to take into consideration that young carers have a lot going against them and you need to look at ways that you can support them and take into consideration that although they might not be at school, they are still doing the best they can to meet their academic requirements. Um I'm trying to think of something else that's really, really inspiring. We do not care that we don't fit the mould.

SPEAKER_06 31:35

Yeah.

SPEAKER_01 31:35

Rock on, Eloise. Proud of your daughter? Did I sound cool then?

SPEAKER_06 31:42

No.

SPEAKER_01 31:43

Oh okay. All right. Well, you better make it sound a bit cooler then and do another song. So have you got another song for us?

SPEAKER_06 31:53

Yep. Um thinking of one on the spot because I was told one, not two.

SPEAKER_01 32:00

Um that's because of our other carer had to not attend at the last minute, so we're all we're all going on the fly, so come on.

SPEAKER_06 32:09

Okay, uh I'm going to do a song. It's a bit heavier. That's we like heavy. And it's my friend. Friends uh multiple.

SPEAKER_01 32:22

Is it is it one with the B word in it? You can do that one.

SPEAKER_06 32:29

What?

SPEAKER_01 32:29

Yeah. No. Oh, okay. You could do that.

SPEAKER_06 32:34

Yeah. No, I'm doing the other one. Okay. Um which honestly I think works. And I think my friend Nathaniel McNeil would be very happy. So uh, this is a great band, Monroe from Melbourne. Um, I've played with them before. Nat's my friend. They're all my friends. This is Take Me for a Ride by Monroe.

SPEAKER_05 32:57

You're crazy, you vote there!

SPEAKER_01 35:14

Now you keep talking about these musicians that you know, and you haven't told us a bit about you and a musician. Who are you and who do you perform with?

SPEAKER_06 35:24

Oh so nice of you to ask. Um, well, I'm in a band called Elo and the Shin Kicks.

SPEAKER_01 35:32

Do you want to spell it so people can look it up?

SPEAKER_06 35:34

Because it's E-L O, but not Elohim. That stands for Elohim Orchestra, it's Eloise.

SPEAKER_01 35:39

Oh, that's the first three names.

SPEAKER_06 35:40

It's short for it's short for Eloise and the Shin kicks. So to to kick. To kick a shin. Okay. Um we're uh kind of rock, kind of punk, but we've also got a hell of a lot going on um mentally and musically, I guess.

SPEAKER_01 35:59

Maybe we could play your song this yeah. Can mummy do a show off and play your song later this episode if we've got time? Yeah, okay.

SPEAKER_06 36:10

Um Well, that's made me upset now. Um Well I love my band. Uh we've got we've got a song released that apparently we'll be playing later, so I guess you have to keep listening if you want to support local artists and young artists and young women in music.

SPEAKER_01 36:31

From the local area in um of of which we're in in uh listening to uh broadcast around uh 94.9 mean FM.

SPEAKER_06 36:42

Where I did my work experience. Let's go. I love Castle Radio. Um my band is I bet it's okay.

SPEAKER_01 36:52

Allo and the Shin Kicks, winners of the Maston Rangers Battle of the Bands, 2024. That was a long time ago, though.

SPEAKER_06 36:59

That's a long time ago.

SPEAKER_01 37:00

Finalists in uh Rocking the Nation.

SPEAKER_06 37:03

That's an Australian wide, you know. 2025.

SPEAKER_01 37:09

Lost to a boy band. We shouldn't say lost, runners up to a boy band.

SPEAKER_06 37:15

That's worse. Anyway, I I'm feuming right now. Can we change?

SPEAKER_01 37:23

Yeah, let's get back to Power to Care Radio. Oh 94.9 main FM. Rush. So back to being a carer. So do you know about any of the different services and supports that are available for you or young, you know, young carers, any carers? Do you know the names of them? Pop quiz starting now. Um power to power to care is one, yes. We're a very well funded who's got a very well-funded CEO, volunteer. Um Power to Care, we're a carer-led organisation which is supporting um there is yes, you are yes, I can lip read in what you're about to say is a good one, and it's specifically for young carers. Say it in a big loud voice.

SPEAKER_06 38:21

Little Dreamers.

SPEAKER_01 38:22

Yes. Little Dreamers is a funded organization that supports young carers. Power to care is getting more and more funding because we're being recognised for how sensational we are. Keep going.

SPEAKER_06 38:35

Hopefully this broadcast will help.

SPEAKER_01 38:37

Oh, everyone will realise how sensational we are. Any other um organisations that you may have spoken to that offer help?

SPEAKER_06 38:48

Bendigo Health. Bendigo Health are the reason my mouth noises at me asking her.

SPEAKER_01 38:55

Yeah, so Bendigo Health is the regional provider of CARE Gateway and the Support for CARE program in the region from which we're broadcasting right now. So what sort of support have you received from Bendico Health in the past? What have they funded for you?

SPEAKER_06 39:15

I got a laptop for school, which recently exploded. Actually.

SPEAKER_01 40:00

Did they offer any sorts of other help that you wanted or uh school money, money for school? Um Oh, I tell you what you did get. You got the young carers bursary. Yes. So that's um Carers Australia helped with that. So that helped with school fees for a while. Um and so that that was a big help. You you didn't get it this year, so that's a shame. So hence the scurvy.

SPEAKER_06 40:31

Um and the the lack of food.

SPEAKER_01 40:34

Yeah, yeah, that's okay.

SPEAKER_06 40:36

I don't deserve it anymore.

SPEAKER_01 40:38

So what I want you to use that beautiful big brain of yours and think if you were the Minister for Carers and you were to say, I've got a million dollars and I can make the world a better place for young carers, what would be some good things to spend money on?

SPEAKER_06 40:58

Charities.

SPEAKER_01 40:59

Charities. But what would the charities do that could make things better for carers?

SPEAKER_06 41:03

For carers or young carers.

SPEAKER_01 41:05

For young carers?

SPEAKER_06 41:06

Um, well, school is definitely a big thing. Education is a big thing, but getting education to work for for people with different home lives, it's schools are very one-size fits all. Um it's very hard for a lot of carers who often get pushed into homeschooling or or not going to school as much as they'd like to. Especially these people who have a lot to give and aren't getting the help that they need.

SPEAKER_01 41:38

So do you think there's the probably even the staff in the schools aren't they don't understand or have the skills enough uh of how to work with or understand what it is for a young carer?

SPEAKER_06 41:52

Definitely. There I don't see like you don't really see like groups, support groups for carers that are run by carers or but you definitely don't see any for young carers. And who do you really turn to? The the people you care for, which are often people in your family. And that's very hard to confide in the people that you care for. And like your friends who often don't understand, and counsellors who often don't understand, like like support for these people. Like probably groups for young carers run by people who were young carers or are young carers. I think that'd definitely help a lot.

SPEAKER_01 42:33

And I know that little dreamers do some of that, and there are other organisations like Satellite Foundation do some of that as well, but it's probably not been available as broadly as what you think. And um they do things like school holiday camps. I've offered you those, but um I think you are a bit reticent to go on school camps with kids that you don't know. Oh, school holiday camps, yeah.

SPEAKER_06 43:00

Also, that's that's school holidays. Why why would I why would I want to do that?

SPEAKER_01 43:06

Yeah, so it's horses for courses, right? What's what some kids think would be an awesome opportunity, others don't. So I that's a really good idea is to to maybe try and influence schools so that they understand more about what this is the jargon we were talking about last week, the lived experience of young carers is, so that they can be better, better equipped and more understanding of um of them. And that actually is a lovely segue into a project that we've got some funding to do through the Department of Families, Fairness and Housing in partnership with Carers Victoria. And um, we're going to be going out to schools. I'm not going to be, we've got a young carer who'll be doing that, and talking to young carers. In schools. I'll be talking to the grown-ups, but the young carer will be talking to kids in schools to um to see if he can help find some of those hidden carers and have these conversations with them. But I'll be talking to some of the grown-ups.

SPEAKER_06 44:21

Because there's a ton of people, young carers that I've met that have no clue what it is or no clue that they can get support.

SPEAKER_01 44:28

That's right. A young kid might have a brother with autism who has some pretty significant uh support needs and they won't see themselves as a carer, but they're doing a whole lot to help their brother out all the time.

unknown 44:41

Yeah.

SPEAKER_01 44:45

Absolutely. Absolutely, spot on. So okay, so that's a good message. That's a good message to um decision makers is influence education. Um message to young carers. Oh this is our soundproof booth that we've got where we can hear birds, we can hear we can hear traffic and we just heard a really loud horn horn blaring, but that's okay.

SPEAKER_06 45:15

Yeah, yeah. Definitely on top of education, like your own interests is something that should be funded for carers. Okay. When families that care need to decide where money goes to. Education um, of course, is a very big priority, but it gets a lot of like needs regarding creativity or support, the art, and all the things that make someone who they are. You know. I feel like those definitely need a lot more attention.

SPEAKER_01 45:49

And that's one of the things that I always felt is that I really felt that I was unable to provide for you and your brother because well, definitely for the whole family, because I was either focused on you or your brother. Um, y your dad or your brother um was the time to dedicate to one particular hobby to driving any of you around. So I would love it if, you know, there was some flexibility to be able to offer a young person to pursue their particular passion or hobby, and that could be through an Uber account or something like that, because you know, I'm I'm the only driver in the household. So there've been times where we've been stuck when Eloise hasn't been able to get a lift places because I'm stuck being a carer.

SPEAKER_06 46:46

And um It's very easy to miss a train with the people that you care for in your house as well. Yeah. Like it's very easy for them to whoop you up and say, Oh, I need you to do this. I I like it.

SPEAKER_01 46:58

Yes. It's we've missed a lot of trains though. Yeah, schedules are very difficult to stick to, aren't they? So um understanding that we need some of those those tools to to um make things a bit more flexible are good. Um and getting getting in early, getting in early before we hit crisis. So realising that if someone does have a brother with autism when they're young, they are a carer. So how can we support them from primary school age rather than waiting until they're in VCE and they could potentially fail VCE because they just don't have all of those scaffolding supports in place.

SPEAKER_06 47:41

Or never go back because like their mental health is so like permanently damaged from having no childhood pretty much.

SPEAKER_01 47:52

Yep. Spot on, spot on. Oh, legendary. Okay, so this is good. Right, I think what we're best to do now is introduce a young local band, award-winning band. She is cringing like you would not believe, and I'm loving it, loving it sick. So uh let's introduce Ello and the Shin Kicks and their hit single, Way You Do.

SPEAKER_06 48:21

Oh god, I'm gonna go to the house.

SPEAKER_04 49:04

I guess I get this feeling that I always follow me. I love that someone's gonna be able to do it.

SPEAKER_01 51:55

Thank you, Eloise, and thank you, Shin Kicks. That was mighty fine music. I was giving it my full attention. However, I did come up with some stats while I was listening. Well, I yeah, I had a bit of assistance. And um the the uh the stats tell me that roughly one in twenty children are young carers. So if we make children, if we say that's people under the age of 18, that's around 120 10,000 people. Or see, I I think it'd be more than that. That doesn't make sense. Or 391,000, um, age between zero to twenty four. So who are young carers supporting? It's most commonly, I would have said it would have most commonly been a sibling, and they're saying no, it's most corr commonly their parent.

SPEAKER_06 52:53

I've heard it mostly parents from being minor.

SPEAKER_01 52:56

Yep, okay. Um then a sibling, then grandparents or other family members, and they're often caring for somebody who has a disability, mental health challenges, chronic illness, alcohol or other drug dependents. So, what are the things that carers usually do? And most people tend to think that carers often doing things like um, you know, bathing, mealtime assistance, that sort of stuff. But here are the things that young carers are doing: emotional support, personal care, which is the washing, dressing, eating, managing medications and appointments, taking on household and financial responsibilities. This is a big one, acting as advocates or interpreters for adults in systems. That's something that you find, especially for kids where they're the ones who are competent at English and their parents aren't. They often have to take their parents to appointments and they're the ones who are doing the interpreting. So that's a it's a huge role because they're they become parentified and they're the ones who are interpreting some pretty important information for their parents. So over one-third of these young people who are carers provide primary care every single day. And we know that compared with other kids their age, young carers are more likely to miss school, more likely to experience fatigue and stress, less likely to compete year complete year twelve, and less likely to go to uni. And that caring responsibilities are a hidden driver of educational disadvantage. So there you go. The data backs up what you were saying.

SPEAKER_06 54:53

Yeah. I did pretty well in school though.

SPEAKER_01 54:56

I know, you've you're you're a dynamite. You're a dynamo. Um, Apple doesn't fall far from the tree, I must say. Okay, it's not about me, it's about you, all right. Yeah. Now, as far as mental health and well-being goes, young carers report higher rates of anxiety and depression. So that goes along with what we say about carers generally. Increased feelings of social isolation. So you're pretty good. But maybe at times you feel a bit socially isolated. I don't know.

SPEAKER_06 55:34

Yeah, I think so.

SPEAKER_01 55:36

Feeling different or invisible. I know that sometimes you might feel that your needs aren't as better. Your needs aren't um being met as much as other members of the family. Reluctance to ask for help due to stigma or fear of intervention, especially, you know, at a place like school. Yeah. Many do not identify themselves as carers as carers, which means they miss out on support. Oh, and guess what we're talking about next? Hidden carers, which we've already talked about as before. And this is where we perpetuate the problems. Yeah. Um, so one in 20 Australian kids is providing unpaid care. Young carers are hidden in plain sight, in classrooms, playgrounds, and communities. Caring doesn't wait until adulthood. Young carers carry adult responsibilities in child-sized lives. So this is all from the Australian Bureau of Statistics, Carers Australia and other bodies. So that's really I'm I'm glad that we've um we've got that good information there. So, what have you learnt from today, Eloise?

SPEAKER_06 56:54

Nothing, I didn't know I didn't know. You've taught us a few things. I taught you everything.

SPEAKER_01 56:59

Yeah, so I'm hoping that you can play us out with our theme song, which is Faith No More and We Care A Lot. And thank you to young carers on behalf of everyone listening. I want you to know that you're not alone, that joy is allowed in your life. And thank you to everyone for listening, and we'll see you next time.

SPEAKER_02 57:22

Bye bye.

SPEAKER_01 57:23

Bye.