Kool Carers

Kool Carers supports young carers and their families aged 8 - 18 years in Essex’s Brentwood and Basildon boroughs, improving the life chances of young carers.

We are currently supporting 142 young carers and with their immediate families this equates to 500+ people.

We provide tailored respite youth groups, trips, counselling and advocacy for young carers and their families, in addition to offering support groups for parents/ carers and grandparents. The programmes that are facilitated are developed and designed with young carers. In addition to these programmes, we offer specialist workshops, which have included cookery, drama, film making, photography, creative writing, sports related activities including personal training and intergenerational yoga.

The vision is for young carers to be encouraged and inspired to no longer care in the shadows, but with support they will gain the confidence to have a voice and make society listen and understand the realities of their lived experiences, creating wider societal awareness.

Kool Carers works effectively in partnership with other providers to deliver personalised holistic support for young carers and their families. Our innovative work aims to improve the skills and aspirations of young carers and we campaign for change, promoting young carers’ voices and experiences.

We have won numerous awards for our work including, BBC Essex Best Community Group in Essex Award 2022, Active Essex, Active & Inclusive Award 2022, Basildon Active Award, 2022, High Sheriff’s Cup 2023 and we were highly commended at the Children and Young People Now Awards 2021 for our work in supporting young carers.