Section 1: Becoming carer aware

Introduction

Welcome to Section 1 of the Carer Aware at University course. This section will give you an opportunity to hear directly from carers around the kind of responsibilities they have and the impact of caring on their health and wellbeing. It will also cover Scottish legislation and policy that relates to carers.

All university staff can make a difference to the experience and success of a student carer’s university journey. Recent research into the Student Experience in Scotland, carried out by Carers Trust Scotland, tells us that carers really benefit when staff understand the challenges they face in balancing university and home life.

Described image
The Student Carer Experience in Scotland, Carers Trust Scotland (Martin, 2020, p. 29)

Section learning outcomes

On completing this section, you will be able to:

  • Demonstrate an awareness of who student carers are and what they do.

  • Identify student carers in your university.

  • Provide an informed response when engaging with a student carer.

  • Support student carers to manage their health and wellbeing or signpost them to appropriate support.

  • Reflect on your own practice and how you can contribute to better outcomes for student carers.

Now go to 1.1  Who is a carer? [Tip: hold Ctrl and click a link to open it in a new tab. (Hide tip)]

1.1  Who is a carer?