Supporting Young Carers to Thrive in Maths

Many young carers balance school alongside providing practical or emotional support for a family member. These additional responsibilities can leave them with less time and energy for learning, making it harder to keep up with schoolwork and reach their full potential.

Recent analysis of Department for Education data found that fewer than half of young carers leave secondary school with five GCSEs, including English and maths, highlighting the significant educational barriers many face.

At MathsMakers, we're committed to helping young carers overcome those barriers by providing personalised maths support in a safe, encouraging environment where they can build confidence and succeed.

A Partnership with Harrow Young Carers

During 2025/26, we were proud to deliver a dedicated 10-week maths programme in partnership with Harrow Young Carers.

The programme supported nine young carers from Years 7–9, providing weekly small-group maths sessions led by an experienced instructor. Students were also supported by four trained Year 12 volunteer mentors from Nower Hill High School, who offered encouragement, helped explain mathematical concepts and acted as positive role models throughout the programme.

Working together with Harrow Young Carers allowed us to create a welcoming environment where students felt understood, supported and able to develop both their mathematical understanding and their confidence.

Positive Outcomes

The programme produced encouraging results.

Students improved their assessment scores by an average of 22 percentage points across the programme, while 100% said they felt they had made progress in maths.

Students also reported increased confidence in a range of important learning behaviours:

• 22% felt more confident asking questions.

• 44% felt more confident talking through their answers.

• 67% felt more confident tackling worded questions.

• 56% felt more confident in their maths learning.

• 78% felt more confident that they could continue improving in maths.

These improvements reflect more than mathematical progress. They demonstrate growing confidence, resilience and willingness to engage with learning.

Working Together

The success of the programme was made possible through close partnership working.

Keeya Fernandes from Harrow Young Carers said:

"The MathsMakers sessions are going really well. Our Harrow Young Carers are finding them very helpful, and we can clearly see improvements in their work – thank you for facilitating such a valuable programme."

Following a visit to the programme, Fatima Asif from Young Harrow Foundation commented:

"It was great to see the programme in action and to witness how engaged the young people were throughout the session."

She also praised the positive learning environment created by the instructor, the strength of the partnership with Harrow Young Carers and the contribution of the volunteer mentors.

At the end of the programme, Tianae Gould from Harrow Young Carers reflected:

"Programmes such as these can make a huge difference in building confidence, routine, wellbeing and a sense of achievement for young people who often put others before themselves."

Developing the Next Generation of Mentors

The programme also benefited the Year 12 mentors, who gained valuable volunteering and work experience while supporting younger students.

Mentors described developing communication, patience, leadership and teaching skills. One reflected:

"The experience taught me how best to communicate as well as improve my patience and time management."

Another shared:

"I learnt to explain even simple concepts in a way students understand. I became better at explaining things and not making students doubt themselves."

Through mentoring, these young people not only developed valuable transferable skills but also became relatable role models for students facing similar challenges.

Looking Ahead

The success of our partnership with Harrow Young Carers has demonstrated the value of providing dedicated maths support for young carers.

Building on this experience, MathsMakers hopes to expand its work with organisations supporting young carers, enabling more young people to access personalised maths support, build confidence and achieve their potential. If your school or organisation would like to find out more, or you're interested in supporting this work, we'd love to hear from you.

We are grateful to Harrow Young Carers, Young Harrow Foundation, our volunteer mentors and everyone involved in making this programme such a success.