A group of young carers and their participants visited Vitality Stadium for a special matchday experience on Tuesday 15th March as AFC Bournemouth hosted Reading.
The young people, supported by AFC Bournemouth Community Sports Trust charity partner, MYTIME Young Carers, were taken pitchside as the players warmed up and watched the match from their seats in the Vitality Main Stand.
The visit took place ahead of Young Carers Action Day on Wednesday 16th March.
MYTIME Young Carers is a Dorset-based children's charity that supports young carers. These remarkable young people care for family members who may be living with a physical illness, a disability, a mental health condition or a drug or alcohol dependency. Some carers are as young as five years old.
MYTIME is the only charity in Dorset working specifically to support young carers, and the organisation makes an enormous difference to this incredibly deserving community. By bringing young carers together to enjoy fun activities and much-needed breaks from their caring responsibilities, MYTIME helps to reduce feelings of loneliness and stress among young carers. By working with schools to improve the quality of provision made for young carers in education, and by offering an Employability Programme designed to support young adult carers into further study and employment, MYTIME supports young carers to thrive and achieve their full potential. Ultimately, MYTIME exists to level the playing field for young carers by providing them with the support, opportunities and friendship that every child needs and deserves.
The partnership has blossomed into regular sessions organised once month by AFC Bournemouth’s community sports trust which has seen 15-20 young people regularly attending Vitality Stadium. The sessions invite young people to take part in and activity where they are encouraged to celebrate something that they have achieved followed by muti sports and activities sessions taking place on at the stadiums football pitches.
Penelope Day, MYTIME Young Carers Director of Fundraising and Communications, said: "The support we receive as an AFC Bournemouth charity partner is incredible. The partnership has helped us to raise awareness of our cause and mission, and it's also created some fantastic opportunities for the young carers we serve, some of whom have had the chance to watch a live football match at the stadium this year. For many of these children, this has been a lifelong dream, and we're so grateful to AFC Bournemouth for making this possible."
Steve Cuss, Head of AFC Bournemouth Community Sports Trust, said: “The partnership with MYTIME Young Carers has been hugely successful, we have thoroughly enjoyed hosting sessions at the Vitality Stadium. The celebration part of the sessions allows the young people to showcase what they have been achieving both at school, and in their home lives, it’s great to see them grow in confidence each week.”
To find out more about MYTIME Young Carers, or to support this very worthy cause with a donation, click here.
