Artists across the south coast are working to raise funds to help us support young carers through the current crisis and beyond.

A group of artists from the Isle of Wight, Hampshire, Devon and Cornwall are the first to offer work to raise money in aid of our young carers service.

The Artists for YMCA project is raising funds to make a difference to the lives of local young carers, with artists offering commissions and existing work in return for donations.

As many as one in five children and young people are carers in the UK. The current covid-19 pandemic is presenting young carers with a whole range of additional difficulties as they are bound to their homes and prevented from attending school, support sessions and respite activities which are otherwise a vital refuge and break from their many responsibilities at home. Young carers are also faced with the prospects of managing household pressures, family anxieties and potential symptoms of vulnerable family members throughout this time. Projects like this ensure we are able to continue offering vital remote support for local young carers aged 5 – 18 throughout this time, as well as providing young carers across the country with long overdue festivities when lockdown restrictions are eventually lifted.

Isle of Wight resident Jeremy Gully, a portrait painter himself, who is promoting the project said: “There is some fantastic work available in a wide price range from £100 to £4,000. Buyers can indulge themselves with a clear conscience knowing 50% to 100% of the price goes to the charity, while artists can make new contacts whilst knowing they are doing good.”

“YMCA has made many young lives better, that is what they are good at, but this year is going to be especially hard. This project is just artists doing what they do best to help.”

Support young carers by commissioning or purchasing a painting from a local talented artist. Visit https://www.artistsforymca.co.uk or view the Artists for YMCA Facebook page.