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       TOKYO -- To support young carers forced to look after and nurse family members, from fiscal 2022 the municipal government in the central Japan city of Takasaki will begin an initiative dispatching helpers for free to households with young carers who are in junior high or high school.

       The scheme is expected to reduce the burden of family care placed on students. Its establishment was announced in August, and preparations are going ahead. The Takasaki city government in Gunma Prefecture says this support initiative is the first of its kind by a municipal authority anywhere in Japan.

       Junior high and high school students eligible for the scheme are approved by a support advancement committee, which also examines the kind of care provided. The committee has been formed by city government departments including the social services and education departments, and they will share information including reports on young carers from schools and other locations which can then be taken into consideration in approvals.

       The city government intends to include around 100 million yen (some $878,000) in necessary funds for the scheme in the proposal for next fiscal year's budget. It envisages sending two helpers to the homes of young carers in need of support, and that they would spend two hours a day for a maximum two times a week at a single household. There, they would help with domestic chores such as cleaning and washing clothes, as well as looking after siblings, nursing family and other duties.

       Schools will serve as a point of consultation for the scheme, and apart from students and their guardians, their homeroom teachers and others can also come forward to request the service for students. The city government's board of education said, "In regards to elementary school students, we want to offer a flexible response where if involved persons or the school come to us for a consultation, we can allow them to accept support."

       According to the board of education, when it went to interview schools regarding young carers, it found that many were already aware of young carers among their pupils. As a result, it reportedly decided to begin the support swiftly.

       (Japanese original by Nao Yamada, Digital News Center)

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