For most children, Christmas is a time of excitement, singing carols and checking for Santa.
But for young carers it can be one of the most stressful periods of the year.
Nearly half of them feel responsible for giving their family a good Christmas, statistics from Action for Children show.
Hundreds of thousands of young people will be looking after loved ones for 11 hours a day – 44% miss social activities and 20% feel stressed or lonely.
We spent a day with Jasmine, 15, who has been caring for her mother – who has several health problems – for eight years and looking after her siblings.
Jasmine, of Caernarfon, Gwynedd, is encouraging people to donate to Action For Children as part of the Mirror’s Give Kids a Cracking Christmas appeal. Readers have already donated £45,000.
“Without Action for Children, I’d feel a lot more alone and struggle to balance work, friends and home life,” she says.
Mum Elaine adds: “When I’m really sick, Jasmine takes over as mum. I’m glad I can call her my daughter – and I don’t tell her that often enough.”
Here, Jasmine shares her diary – showing a typical day – with readers...
6am: My alarm goes off. I always want to press snooze but I need to make sure my siblings Ruby, 10, and Emrys, six, get up and have their things ready for school. I wake up Mum and make sure her medication and breakfast are ready.
7.10am: I moved school in March so I have to catch two buses. I used to take my siblings to the bus stop but I leave too early. Ruby has started becoming a carer so she helps as much as she can.
9am: I go to all my lessons but make sure that I message Mum in the morning to check that she’s OK. I’m doing my GCSEs and hopefully I’ll be going to 6th form next year. I want to go to university – I’d like to work in a museum or in archives or become an archeologist. I get the afternoon off once a month when Action for Children has group sessions. It feels nice to meet young people like me.
My sister was involved with Action for Children from a young age. We go on trips and went to the pantomime Snow White.
4.30pm: I get changed, ready to make dinner. We eat at about 5pm. Then I’ll do the dishes and put coal on the fire. Ruby does the hoovering. We try to clean the house and remember to take out the rubbish. My little brother tries to help but he’s only six. Sometimes Mum helps if she’s feeling well enough. Last Christmas, Mum got sick and I had to do everything around the house, and it really stressed me out.
We didn’t get a Christmas dinner and I couldn’t make my siblings happy. I slept in their bedroom on the floor to make sure they were OK.
6pm: I try to catch up on homework. Mum might shout me to help with a job. This can happen a few times, so by the time I start revising again I’m not in the zone. Sometimes I have to stay up late or do my homework on the bus.
Sometimes my friends ask if I want to do things on the weekend and I can’t because I have to look after Mum, catch up on homework or Mum can’t afford it.
7pm: I get my brother and sister ready for bed and relax with Mum.
9pm: I give Mum her final medication then we go to bed at around 9.30pm.
You can be a real help
The Daily Mirror is raising funds for Action for Children, so it can buy Christmas gifts for some of the UK’s most vulnerable children and offer festive meals to hard-up families.
Action for Children says there are more than 120,000 kids living in temporary accommodation or hostels, with many under-10s without basic essentials such as fresh food or warm clothing.
So every penny you donate to our Give Kids a Cracking Christmas appeal will make a difference.
Action for Children is marking its 150th anniversary and the charity’s Julie Bentley said: “Your donation will help us support our most vulnerable children, not just at Christmas but every day.”
What your cash could provide
£10 - a hot meal for a child
£10 - a trip to the panto
£25 - winter shoes
£25 - kids' Christmas present
£40 - essentials for newborns
£40 - winter clothing
£60 - a safe place to sleep
To donate
- Send a cheque payable to Action for Children to Daily Mirror Christmas Appeal, One Canada Square, Canary Wharf, London E14 5AP
- Text MIRRTEN to 70175 to donate £10 to Action for Children, MIRRFIVE to 70175 to give £5 or MIRRTHREE to 70175 to donate £3. Action for Children will receive 100% of your donation.
- To donate but opt-out to all future communications, text MIRRTEN NO or MIRRFIVE NO or MIRRTHREE NO to 70175.
- By phone: To make a donation, call 0300 123 2112
- Online: Donate or buy a virtual gift online at www.iamsanta.org.uk/mirror
