Meet Sarah, a carer from Glasgow

Between February and March 2021, we took our creative:voices programme for carers to Scotland for the first time, thanks to our partnership with First Sentier Investors.

The visual arts project, delivered online via Create Live! by our professional artist Rachel McGivern, brought together carers from Care for Carers Edinburgh and Glasgow East End Community Carers over several weeks. It enabled them to meet new people, explore new modes of self-expression and develop creative skills including drawing, print-making and weaving, all from the safety of their own homes. 

Sarah (33) cares for her two sons. She shared her experiences of taking part in this project and how it has enabled her to reconnect with herself.   

“I care for my son. He’s five years old. He has been diagnosed with autism and also has reflux, which he has had since he was a baby. It’s 24-hour care. He’s had sleep issues so you don’t get enough sleep at night-time. He throws up quite a lot during the day, so there’s a lot of caring and cleaning up involved. It’s a very busy role, not only on the emotional side of things but physically as well.

“We also suspect that my younger son (4) may have ADHD. He’s very, very hyper and has sleep issues as well. It’s a lot of energy in the house. You have to withhold your self-expression just to carry on.

“I had to stop and say ‘I need to do something for myself’. This art workshop was the perfect opportunity. If the workshop wasn’t there I wouldn’t have stopped.”

“I feel really liberated”

“Most of my artworks from the workshops are unfinished, but I feel really liberated. I used to be an arts student, a long, long time ago, but my health has not been the best, and my caring role kept me away. So it was really nice to come back to this, to reconnect.

“This was a really important workshop for me, to feel confident in myself, to find my identity again. As a carer you lose your identity, you feel as if all you’re doing is looking after somebody else, and that somebody else becomes your number one. This break of two hours away … it was really nice to find myself again.

“This was a really important workshop for me, to feel confident in myself, to find my identity again.”

Sarah

“The first day I didn’t realise the Edinburgh Carers Centre were going to be involved as well. It was really nice that we were able to cross the cities and meet new people. Everybody was coming from different backgrounds, and everybody was really friendly.

“I learnt that, with visual art, nothing is right and nothing is wrong. Anything is your interpretation. Everybody had different colours, different ideas to display. They were all different, they were all unique. That’s something really interesting in visual art: your perspective, and your creation. You learn all these different mediums to express that, so it wasn’t just sketching. It was also a bit of paint work, print work, weaving using recycled materials.”

Standing Taller

“It’s difficult to describe the feelings you get [from being creative]… You feel more confident in yourself. You see a different side of yourself: that you can do something. And that something gives you more confidence to stand a little bit taller.

“Since taking part in the workshop, my husband has gone out and bought me a sketchbook. What I’ve learned from the project is that I will definitely carry on. If I get some more time to myself, I wouldn’t mind picking up my sketchbook and sketching up something really simple.

“I’ve already got a project for myself for the summer from the printmaking. I’m going to take some bags and T-shirts and print them up in something boyish so I can make something for my boys. The skills have definitely been handy, and I will definitely take them forward.”

Supported by:

Let’s dance: three young carers talk about dancing over Zoom

This February we teamed up with Carers Trust to run three dynamic dance projects with young carers in the South and South West of England during the half-term break.

Our professional dancers – Beth Coleman, Natalie Haslam, Amy Toner and Nikki Watson – led groups of young carers from Brighton & Hove, Bristol, and Buckinghamshire in three-day dance projects that gave them a chance to meet new people, express themselves and take an active break from their caring responsibilities.

We spoke to three of the young carers to find out about the challenges they face and get their feedback. All names have been changed to protect anonymity.

Meet Poppy

Poppy (11) cares for her brother, Jack.

“I care for my brother Jack who’s autistic and I have to take care of him because sometimes it’s hard for my parents to do it on their own. I try to ignore it [thinking about my situation] as much as I can and try and play with my friends. I’m proud of myself and how I cope with it.

“I’d describe the workshop as one of the best experiences of my life. It was basically the first young carers thing I attended. I met a really nice person called Olivia as well. I got her phone number and when I got home, she added me to a group where I met 10 other friends.

“I liked getting to know everyone and making up dances with everyone. If I liked their dance style, I could memorise some of the ideas for another time. I have a private account on TikTok and I just love to get a random sound and be weird on there. You can try anything as long as you know that it’s not about you being good. It’s about you having fun and enjoying it and wanting to do it more.” 

Meet Erin

Erin (9) cares for her older sister, Emma.

“The first lockdown for Emma was really hard and she got really frustrated doing her work. Sometimes she’s happy and sometimes she’s not happy so I have to leave her alone or I have to play with her if she asks me to play. I don’t get to choose what to do – Emma chooses.

“Having this project has really made me feel free. We’ve been doing dancing and moving and energetic kind of stuff. We created our own moves and then we put them in a different order. It’s been fun.

“I enjoyed being creative with others. It made me feel quite happy because I can meet people on Zoom. I think it’s important to do creative things because then you can show people who you are, what kind of person you are just through art.”

Meet Bethany

Bethany (8) cares for her mother.

“We care for mum because she has a chest condition and her heart stopped. When she gets very ill, I have to call my sister or my brother or bring her things.

“The workshops made me feel weird (in a good way) and happy. We danced and played games. We made a Jacket Dance where we came up with a few moves of our own and did a solo performance.

“I do creative things by myself all the time but this is the only [creative] thing I’ve done this lockdown. I felt happy. I learned how to dance better than my sister. It was literally like somewhere without the coronavirus everywhere around me. It was a lot of fun.”

This project was part-funded by Carers Trust via a grant from the Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, as part of the Government’s £750 million Charity Package #CommunitiesCan #letstalkloneliness

Meet Harry, a young carer

Nine-year-old Harry is a young carer who looks after his younger sister, who has autism, and his toddler younger brother.

On average, young carers like Harry provide 17 hours of care a week, which can have a significant effect on their schoolwork, ability to form friendships, and mental or physical health.

Christmas can be an especially challenging time for young carers, as their responsibilities increase. In December 2020, we partnered with Lambeth Young Carers to give 12 young carers the chance to take a break from their responsibilities and have some festive fun, supported by Greater London Authority via Groundwork. They took part in a three day comic-making project with our visual artist Chloe Cooper. The project was delivered virtually, via Create Live!

We caught up with Harry after the workshop to learn about his life as a young carer and how this workshop helped improve his wellbeing.    

“I have to look after two – Juliet, my sister who is autistic, and she needs help a lot; and my brother, Oliver because he’s a baby. When my sister goes to the toilet, she always needs someone to be with her to supervise her. 

“For my brother, I always have to try and distract him while my mum cooks. All the time. I always keep an eye on him. When I play games, I have to stop to help Oliver, then get back, then help Oliver, then get back, then help my mum, help my dad. It’s stressful.

“I always have to stop Juliet from carrying Oliver because she thinks he’s a doll and she starts to throw him all the way up to the ceiling and lets him fall to the floor. So when I hear him screaming, I go “oh boy!” and I have to run and walk and then Juliet goes “ai ai ai”. Then she puts him down.

“I really enjoyed the comic-making workshop. I especially enjoyed drawing my characters and helping everyone get ideas. I learned about characters, sound effects, speech bubbles, thought bubbles, captions, panels and backdrops. The workshop made me happy – I really want to say: ‘Oh guacamole!’ It’s my favourite line.

“I think projects like this are good for young carers because they refresh their minds. I can take a break just until 3 o’clock and then go back to helping mum or dad. I feel like I have taken a big break and I feel refreshed.”

CLICK ON THE COMICS TO SEE THE YOUNG CARERS’ WORK

All names have been changed to protect anonymity.

Carers who took part in our project with Carers Trust share its impact

In November and December 2020, we teamed up with Carers Trust to run six weeks of inspiring workshops with adult carers from across the UK.

The project, creative:voices, saw our professional artists run workshops in partnership with eight Carers Trust Network Partners in East Sussex, Enfield, Leeds, Lewisham, Sefton (Liverpool), Suffolk, Surrey and Tower Hamlets. Delivered via our Create Live! delivery mechanism over Zoom, these included creative writing, music, photography, and visual art.

There are almost seven million unpaid carers in the UK. 81% say they feel lonely or isolated as a result of their caring role; 72% say they have suffered stress or depression as a result of caring; and the proportion of carers who report experiencing poor mental health has increased by 10% during the pandemic.

creative:voices gave 51 unpaid adult carers the opportunity to take a break from their caring responsibilities, explore their creativity and self-expression and meet other carers, building a support network. It enabled them to build skills, boost their confidence and have fun. 94% said the project enhanced their creativity, teamwork skills and wellbeing; and 100% said they enjoyed working with our professional artists. 69% reported increased confidence as a result of taking part in the project.

This is what some of the participants said about taking part in creative:voices. All names have been changed to protect anonymity.

Jenny

Jenny (60+) cares for her father, who suffers from schizophrenia and is addicted to alcohol and gambling. She took part in the creative writing workshops.

“You can feel quite small when you’re a carer. You’re giving all your time and energy to somebody else. Your world can become narrower and narrower and more and more restricted so to have that opportunity to step outside of it and to meet other people who are in the same situation is so important.

“I can come into the start of the session sometimes feeling quite low but step out of them feeling boosted and exhilarated as if I’ve travelled to far-flung places. By the end of a short two hours, to have words on a page, unique words, that have come from within gives me a huge sense of achievement.”

Sally

Sally (39) cares for her daughter who has Down syndrome, while also looking after her son who was born with a cleft lip and palate. She took part in the photography workshops.

“Being a carer is harder than any job I’ve ever had. You don’t get a break, so there’s no time for me. I’m shattered by the end of the evening.

“This project is brilliant. I really enjoyed it. Projects like this remind you of what you used to like, before this life that you didn’t ever expect came along.

“It was really nice to do something for me, and something I can take with me in everyday life. We take so many photos of family and friends for Instagram, and I look at everyone else’s and think ‘gosh I wish I could do something like that’, and I realise actually I can do that. That has been the biggest positive for my self-confidence.

“I liked that we had time to come back and really look at each other’s work and talk through our vision. Through the week I was like ‘I didn’t think of that, that’s really clever’. Then because I saw their vision, I started seeing it through the week in my photos, and I found moments when I would smile to myself during the week and say ‘Ooh this is nice’.”

stacey

Stacey (34) cares for her seven-year-old son, who has autism and ADHD. She took part in the music workshops.

“When you’ve got a child with autism, the demands are quite a lot higher. It’s constant. It does take quite a toll on your emotions and things like that. But I do find it very rewarding as well.

“Music for me has always been important, but during my caring role I’ve kind of put it to one side, thinking it wasn’t important enough to pursue. I made myself sign up for the workshops thinking it will be nice to do something for me, and I’m glad I did it. It reawakened a part of me that’s been lying dormant for too long.

“The workshops have been really experimental, creative and innovative. People have been able to join in and access the workshops even if they aren’t musicians or haven’t played an instrument before. It has been really inclusive for everybody. It’s also amazing that we could do it all together, in this strange COVID world.

“The biggest thing is that it’s good for your wellbeing. Being creative in this way has really helped me from a mental health and a physical health perspective. My kids have seen a part of me that I’d never shown them before, and now they’re more creative with their music as a result of that. I get a buzz from playing, and I also get a buzz from seeing them enjoy me playing music to them as well.”

May

May (60+) is the oldest child from a large family, and she has spent most of her life caring for various family members. She came to the UK from Africa “when Idi Amin threw everyone out” at the age of 21. She took part in the visual art workshops.

“I think as a carer, you get side-tracked and forget yourself. You’re so busy looking after everybody else. I came to realise this when I had a heart attack 13 years ago. I had to stop and re-evaluate my whole situation. I still look after people but I have boundaries in place now. Even if you mark out two hours, it’s two hours that are dedicated to you. It’s a way for you to look after your own health.

“I’ve never been online. My daughter does everything for me so this workshop encouraged me to do some independent learning as well, which is brilliant. It actually pushes you to wake up and do something, because otherwise you go from week to week doing nothing. You just get bored.

“The workshop with Create has inspired me a lot and taught me about artists I’ve never heard of. It gave me the push to explore. I feel like an artist again – an artist reborn!”

Abi has been a carer her whole life: she looks after her older brother, eight-year-old sister and supports her mum, a single parent. Abi has taken part in our workshops via her local young carer service since she was seven. They give her a rare opportunity to take some time out for herself and have unlocked a life-long love of creativity.

Being a young carer

I look after my brother Johnny who has autism and learning disabilities. I also look after my mum, who gets very stressed, and my little sister, who can get very scared when my brother is getting angry or being loud.

Because Johnny has autism, if there’s a small change in our life he can get very angry and very irritated. Johnny is older than me, so I’ve been caring my whole life. I couldn’t really help out when I was a toddler, but it has been something I’ve always had to live with and deal with.

Most of my caring is offering emotional support, just being there and calming everyone down. With Johnny it’s also taking him to see buses, because he loves buses and it helps him to be happy. Because Johnny gets so excited when he sees buses, going out with him also means explaining to some members of the public why he can get a bit loud and jumpy. 

“Being a young carer is a blessing and a curse. I’m proud of the caring role that I have and that I’m able to help.”

Young carer Abi

Johnny gets called a lot of names in public. People get angry at him if he’s being too loud or he’s not being considerate to other people, which he can’t help. I do a lot of sticking up for Johnny but some people are not very nice and laugh at him.

My mum gets very stressed, especially with housing and money issues. I try to speak to her and calm her down if she gets angry. I go shopping for her for bread, milk and those things that we need quite often.

Being a young carer is a blessing and a curse. I’m proud of the caring role that I have and that I’m able to help. At the same time, caring responsibilities prevent me from doing stuff most people my age would do, and I miss out on a lot of opportunities. To be able to care for someone, to be able to look after someone, it’s a big responsibility and it’s something to be very proud of.

You have to grow up very fast as a young carer and almost be an adult as a kid. You mature fast when you’re looking after someone else.

I get quite a lot of schoolwork, especially because I’m near GCSE time now. I often get up at 4am or 5am, so I can fit it some homework and have enough time in the day to look after Johnny. I don’t get much sleep because I go to bed late and get up early to fit in as much work as I can. It’s very tiring.

When I do get free time, I like to make short films with my sister. We go through loads of different music to try and get inspired and create a short film from what we come up with. Looking after someone can be a really difficult and stressful task so in my free time I like doing things that calm me down.

Being creative with create

I did a film project with Create, and that’s what started my love for making short films. We made a range of short films, using different filming methods and different gadgets. The artist also introduced us to editing software, which is the one I use now.

“Without creativity I wouldn’t be the same person I am today.”

Young carer Abi

I’ve been taking part in Create workshops for around eight years now. I’ve done lots of artforms: animation, film making, scriptwriting, jewellery making, painting, music and so many more.

I’ve learnt a lot through Create workshops and working with professional artists. I’ve also learnt skills by experimenting on my own, having a lot of failed attempts and then finally creating something good.

Getting to meet other kids who are in the same situation as I am is very different from being at school with people my age who don’t understand the caring role as much. All of us understand how much these workshops mean to us. I think that is something we share, so it’s like a big family because we’re all in the same situation in life.

Create has also helped me with my caring role. You need a break from something in order to do your best and be in a positive mindset. Create gives me a break and allows me to see the positives in my caring role and the positives in life. The workshops give you a couple of hours not to have the stress of caring and just be a kid again.

Without creativity I wouldn’t be the same person I am today. I definitely wouldn’t be as happy as I am. It’s something to fall back on when I’m sad or not in the best mood. It’s something that will always be there and that no one can take away.

Being able to unlock the creative side of your brain is very therapeutic. For me, all artforms are therapeutic; it’s a way to release your emotions and energy that you have built up.

Being creative makes me feel really accomplished, proud and happy. It also lets me dream.

Abi was the subject of our BBC Radio 4 appeal, presented by Isy Suttie, which was broadcast on Sunday 20 and Thursday 24 September 2020. You can listen to the appeal here. 

Meet Ajay

Between June and July 2020, Create ran a photography project via Create Live! with adult carers from Harrow and Lewisham as part of creative:voices, a project designed to help adult carers relieve stress and explore their creativity.

Create Live! is Create’s online, interactive project initiative developed to reach participants during the lockdown.

Ajay (60+) cares for a family member with a physical disability and attends Carers Lewisham. He told us about his experiences taking part in the photography workshops.

“Lockdown has been really, really difficult.”

Ajay

“I’ve been caring for different members of my family for forever, it seems to me. For my mum and dad. My brother Matt who had cancer, and he died a few years ago.

“And now Leroy, who has lost his right leg and is in a wheelchair. I’ve been looking after his wellbeing and making sure he’s okay, making sure his personal needs are met. It’s really about paying attention to him all the time, so he’s not being neglected.

“Lockdown has been really, really difficult. Because I’ve not been able to go out really. It’s been a lonely experience being alone in the house, stuck with my thoughts a lot of the time and also concerned about my brother.

“It has affected my mind as well, I think. Because I’m not sleeping as well as I want to.

“I took on the photography project because I wanted a distraction. Something to help me reconnect with me.

“It’s important to have those activities which help you to think in a different way and open up new possibilities of thought for you. When your mentality is in a particular cycle and you’re stuck on a treadmill, it is a downwards spiral in the end. I think the photography is helping me with that because it’s giving me something else to focus on. So, it’s helping my mental wellbeing.

“For me, the photography workshop was about exploring light and form and shapes and just thinking about composition.

“I’m more creative than I had given myself credit for in the past.”

Ajay

“I’ve enjoyed the whole process and I’m excited every time I come on [to the call]. I’m looking forward to it every Friday. I’ve always loved photography, but I’ve never really done it fully. [Since taking part in the workshops] I’ve bought myself a Lumix camera.

“I’ve learnt that I can be more imaginative and more creative with myself. The project is helping me to deal with all the stuff I’m dealing with. I’m not just focused on my issues, in terms of my caring role. It’s also given me a bit of space for myself and I’ve learnt that I value that space to just be who I am. Recapture something of who I am, and not just be thinking always about my brother who I care for. It’s hard for me to do that. It has also made me realise that I’m more creative than I had given myself credit for in the past, so that has been a good experience as well.

“I feel really positive about my processes. In terms of thinking things through and trying to be original, because I like humour in my photographs. Seeing other people’s work is also encouraging because you’re seeing how different people view the same idea and create something unique to them. It’s fascinating to watch and really inspiring as well.”

Follow Create on Instagram or Twitter for the latest blogs, participant work and news.

Meet Abebi, ITV Creates participant

In March 2020, we worked with our professional visual artist, Amy Leung, and young carers from Hillingdon, Kingston and Lambeth to create a new ITV ident. The ident ran on the channel from 10 – 16 August.

Abebi (10) is one of the young carers who took part in our ITV Creates project. Here, she tells us about her experience.

“It was like no other experience; you couldn’t do anything like that in a normal art class.”

Young Carer Abebi

“Me and my younger sister care for our mum who has trouble walking and taking her medication. I started helping out giving mum her medication and doing jobs around the house when I was six years old.

“Being creative with other people was really fun. I don’t really get the chance to do extra activities at school, so it is fun doing art. You make new friends and we all helped each other with the artwork and talked about it. Doing creative projects with Create shows you that you’re not the only carer and that there are other people caring for their parents. It’s very good when you come together and combine your ideas with everyone else.

“We were making an ident. It’s what they put in the corner of the TV screen when they’re showing adverts. We were using colourful boxes to create the sculpture in the ITV shape, making art and sticking that to the boxes.

“I really like Harry Potter, so I put Gryffindor colours all around the things I drew. And then I drew over the picture myself and stuck it onto a small canvas. It was messy because I got paint all over my hands, but my drawing was really neat. I liked sticking up my artwork. I really liked the work I did. It was really fun. It was like no other experience; you couldn’t do anything like that in a normal art class. The day really inspired me because you got to draw, to paint, to be with other people and not just by yourself. Everyone helped each other and made new friends.

“At first it was a bit weird being in the ITV studio, but you get used to everything around you like the lights and the cameras. Then it felt normal. Amy is really nice and a very kind person. I think anyone would want to be friends with her. I’ve learnt that I can be really creative if I set my mind to it. If you’re not creative, it can be really boring because you don’t have anything to do.

“The project made me be more creative. If there’s not much to do I’m really, really creative and I make good pieces of art.”

See the final ident, and read more about the project, here.