Help us shape Richmond’s new Carers and Young Carers Charter

Do you care for a friend or family member? If so, we invite you to complete a short survey and tell us what would make a real difference to you in your caring role. 

Our borough is home to an estimated 14,000 people who have unpaid caring responsibilities. An unpaid carer is anyone who looks after a friend or family member who, due disability, mental or physical illness or an addiction, cannot cope without their support. 

These responsibilities affect people of all ages and backgrounds, including over 1,000 young people locally. The commitment and dedication of unpaid carers, often unseen, are vital to our community and local services. 

To best support people with caring responsibilities of all ages, we are building on the existing Richmond Carers Strategy by creating a Carers and Young Carers Charter. This will be developed using carers’ own words and experiences, and outline priorities that Richmond Council, local health and care services and voluntary sector organisations will pledge to work towards to improve carers’ lives. 

From now until 31 March 2025, we are gathering carers’ views on four key themes:

• Recognition and understanding – ensuring your role as an unpaid carer is acknowledged and your needs are fully understood
• Economic and academic impact – addressing the financial and educational challenges that come with being a carer
• Carer-friendly services and communities – making local services more accessible and supportive for carers
• Health and wellbeing – improving the overall wellbeing of carers through better access to support, resources and respite

Take part in the survey

Your feedback will help shape a charter that truly represents the voices of local carers while building on what we’ve already learnt through the Carers Strategy. 

If you cannot complete the survey online and need assistance, please call us at 020 4526 2675. We are happy to collect your responses over the phone. 

If you are part of a local group or organisation, you can help by supporting unpaid carers in your community to take part in this survey. 

Once themes from the survey have been gathered and a draft charter developed, the local partners involved in this project will host a series of focus groups to ensure unpaid carers have an opportunity to agree final wording.

For more information, please visit the survey website.