First, research carried out in the first part of the project (survey, country case studies, reviews and Delphi study) facilitated innovative cross-national comparison, which represents the first large scale findings on the mental health needs and well-being of adolescent young carers (AYCs) in Europe.
Second, the ME-WE intervention stands out as the first-ever randomised control trial with AYCs. Its unique inclusion of six European nations with a varied level of approaches and awareness of AYCs is ground-breaking, and it is the first time that the DNA-V Model has had dedicated use with AYCs. In response to the COVID-19 pandemic, the intervention was fully virtualized, thus enabling running the support programme in any circumstances, which constituted a challenge but also an innovation.
The method of Blended Learning Network (BLN) proved to be a successful way of working in partnership with end-users (AYCs) together with other stakeholders. The method could be used by researchers and practitioners for other vulnerable groups in research, practice and policy arenas alike. A co-design approach constituted a key added value in the ME-WE project, compared to other (top-down) research projects in the field.
Furthermore, as the ME-WE project brought together countries at different levels of awareness of and support for young carers, the research findings can help other countries with a current low level of awareness to learn from the successful approaches adopted by the project countries.
The active engagement of Eurocarers – the pan-European association advocating for carers – in the ME-WE consortium was a fundamental driver for a significant achievement of results for communication, dissemination and exploitation at European level. Thanks to Eurocarers, its networks and established activities, the project had a substantial impact on European stakeholders and policy makers, contributing to raising awareness on young carers and starting to include the issue in policy agendas.
The project partners created and will continue creating links with AYCs, schools, health and social care systems, policy makers, contributing to an increased awareness among relevant stakeholders and the general public. This has the potential to lead to more carer-friendly societies and reduce the stigma around caring, especially at a young age. As a result: more young carers across Europe will be able to self-identify as carers and ask for support; professionals will be empowered to identify young carers and provide them with support. The increased awareness – combined with research-based evidence on strategies to support young carers – will drive the change in mind-sets, policies and practices across Europe. This will enable young carers to pursue their goals in life and to thrive.
