Young Carers

Who are Young Carers?

Young carers are children and young people under 18 years old who provide unpaid care to a family member who is physically or mentally ill, disabled or misuses substances.

The tasks and level of caring undertaken by young carers can vary according to the nature of the illness or disability, the level and frequency of need for care and the structure of the family as a whole.

A young carer may undertake some or all of the following:

·         practical tasks such as cooking, housework, shopping

·         physical care such as lifting, helping up the stairs and physiotherapy

·         personal care such as dressing, washing and helping someone go to the toilet

·         emotional support such as listening, calming someone and being present

·         household management such as paying the bills, managing finances and  

          collecting benefits

·         looking after siblings such as putting to be and walking to school

·         interpreting for parents with hearing or speech impediments or English as an

          additional language

·         administering medication such as insulin needles and preparing daily tablets.

 

If you think you or someone you know is a Young Carer, please email us; youngcarers@dgsb.co.uk (this is checked by lunchtime on school days and not continuously monitored)

 

DGSB Whole School Commitment to Young Carers

DGSB is committed to meeting the needs of young carers so that they can attend and enjoy school in the same way as other pupils/students and achieve their potential.

We have designated Young Carers’ School Leads for each Key Stage with responsibility for young carers and their families, as shown on noticeboards and website. Support can be accessed via youngcarers@dgsb.co.uk.

DGSB only shares information with professionals and agencies on a need to know basis in order to support pupils and their families.

The school actively seeks feedback and ideas from young carers and their families to shape and improve support; please email us via youngcarers@dgsb.co.uk.

 

 

What support does DGSB offer their Young Carers?

If you need to make a phone call home, you can go to your Key Stage Office and make it in private.

There is a dedicated email where you can message us if you need to; youngcarers@dgsb.co.uk (this is checked by lunchtime on school days and not continuously monitored).

We can help you get a FREE bus pass.

There are specific staff you can go to; 

Mr Wakefield or Mrs Dalton

KS3; Mrs McClellan

KS4; Mrs Robinson 

KS5; Mrs Lavender

 

The rest is up to you; we want to hear what our Young Carers would like support with and how you receive it.

Would you prefer 1:1 or group session or both?

Are there any skills that you would help you with your caring role, such as First Aid, Fire Safety or cooking?

Would you like to do fun activities; art and craft, sport based or something more relaxing?

Let us know; email youngcarers@dgsb.co.uk

 

Homework help

We understand that it can be difficult sometimes to juggle school work and home life.

Did you know that the library is available every lunchtime for you do your homework, revise and print out school work?

If the library is shut, the Learning Centre is available.

If you are struggling to complete your homework, please talk to your tutor or subject teacher and explain why; they will help!

 

Useful links

https://kooth.com/

https://doversmartproject.co.uk/young-carers/

 

Young Carers - Dover Smart Project

If you are a Young Carer or Young Adult Carer and you like art then you might like to join our support group in the gallery. Young Carers meet every Saturday morning from 10.30am to midday.

https://doversmartproject.co.uk/

 

 

 

 

 

 

Latest News

Posted on: 3/09/2019

Message from Les Craggs, Chair of Governors, DGSB

So What Did the School Governors Do in 2018-9? Our Team The DGSB GB is a relatively small team, just nine core members with three additional members plus a professional clerk. We are a mixed bunch - several with rich educational experience of running schools but there are also governors who work in sectors such as business, commerce and the civil service. The parents of children at the school whom you elected are important members as are those who were chosen by school staff. All governors get involved in all governor business but they have specialisms too, covering topics such as safeguarding, careers, health & safety, finance, teaching & learning and leadership. We fulfil our roles in a number of ways but the most tangible are via meetings and through visiting the school. Across the eight GB meetings in 2018-9, average attendance was 88%, demonstrating the commitment that my colleagues have to our mission to both challenge and support the school. And the pattern of governor visits bears this out too, with every governor visiting at least three times during the year to look at a specific aspect of school life and see the school at work. Many conclude with a written report going to the school; there were 37 such reports in 2018-19. One change we made this year was to have at least one governor available during Parent Consultation Evenings in case anyone wanted to have dialogue with us; we intend continuing this initiative into the new school year. Like any team, members leave and others join; we had two such changes earlier in the year. New School A major focus for us at this time is the learning environment. First and foremost is ensuring the site and buildings are safe and comfortable for pupils and staff alike - quite a challenge given the ageing nature of the current school. We have scrutinised the purchase of a new minibus, overseen contract developments with the school’s caterer and approved the changes to our security fencing and gates. And, of course, all the preparation to seek brand new premises for our school at a time in the not too distant future has engendered a plethora of meetings, plans and tasks that we have addressed with growing excitement. Pupil Progress and Care Naturally, a key topic for any GB is how well pupils are doing so we have spent a lot of time, looking at examination results and other performance data, interviewing subject leaders and monitoring the school’s plans for ensuring optimum progress possible for each and every learner who attends DGSB. But we are a caring community too so have, as an example, involved ourselves in the important work staff are doing to support Young Carers and we have agreed the move to ensure that our oldest students (in the sixth form) are aided in becoming independent learners and more adult members of the school community, for example, in changes to the dress code. And as the world changes so too must the curriculum on offer at DGSB as well as the manner in which it is presented to our pupils and students. Hence, we have engaged actively with staff about changes to the school day, enhancement to our programme of Careers Education and attended with pride events held by our Combined Cadet Force to mention just a few. Accountability Financial integrity is another heavy responsibility for all who work in the public sector and this GB does all that it should in overseeing how the annual budget is established, how money is spent across the year and how best value is sought in all its purchasing and use of resources. Clearly, the school’s most precious resource is its staff; whilst we do not directly manage teachers or other staff - that is the headteacher’s role - we play a part in overseeing their employment and development.  For example, in offering an exit interview to each and every member who moves on, be that to a promotion elsewhere, to retirement or to other life pathways. The feedback we glean from such conversations helps us in ensuring our school continues in our unending quest for improvement. The one member of staff whom we do manage directly is the headteacher himself and we have in place secure and appropriate systems to ensure he is professionally supported and supervised. Keeping Up To Date As a GB, we recognise our own limitations and need to keep learning. Attending district as well as national meetings, linking with neighbouring schools’ GBs and using national and international internet based resources help us in the quest. This year we have made judicious use of a particular web-based set of resources specifically available to GBs called The Key, which has been helpful. Late in the year we have started to change our IT systems and make better use for communication and storage the Microsoft Office 365 software purchased by the school; early days but we are already appreciating the greater efficiency this offers. The main mechanism for how the GB seeks to move forward comes from our self-evaluation and self-improvement processes which, last year, saw us combining closely with our partner school, Dover Girls Grammar School. Both schools’ GBs felt so positive about this project that we have just started a suite of meetings for a wider group of local secondary schools’ governors so we can support each other in finding solutions to the problems and challenges we all face. Policy Framework Like any public institution and large organisation, the school frames its work through a suite of policy statements, some statutory, some elective. It is the role of the GB to agree formally all such policies and this has been an ongoing piece of work across the year, scrutinising a wide range of matters, from how staff pay decisions are made to how we provide for pupils with additional needs and from how we go about admitting new pupils to our school to how we would implement a “lockdown” procedure in the event of an intrusion or other emergency. Of course, our website is the most transparent window for parents and others to view our policies so we not only ensure they are available there but also deploy a governor to make sure that the website is maintained in accordance with need and is fit for purpose. Stakeholders 2018-9 has been, as others before it, an extremely busy and demanding year for the DGSB GB. We do not anticipate that this will change as we go into a new academic year with a new intake of pupils, exciting prospects for school development and an earnest desire and intent on the part of governors to work ever more closely with and through our key stakeholders - pupils, staff, parents and members of the local community. If you would like to know more about this report or the work of the GB, do not hesitate to ask.   Les Craggs          Chair of Governors    August 2019      

Upcoming Events

Back to Top