A YOUNG carer who has looked after her mother since the age of five has spoken of her experiences after a charity tribute night at The Met.

Abba tribute band band Arrival UK performed at the Bury venue on Friday as part of a bid to raise £5 million for unpaid young carers in the borough and across the UK.

The night was organised with The Co-operative, which this year chose to champion charity Carers Trust — a partner of which is Crossroads Care in Kay Street.

It is estimated the evening raised more than £500 towards helping the UK’s 500,000 young adult carers.

One user of the services Crossroads Care provides is a 21-year-old from Bury, who wished to remain anonymous.

Her mother has mobility problems and after caring for her since the age of five, the daughter now provides 24-hour support.

Her day-to-day tasks involve the complete running of the household — from cooking, cleaning and gardening to grocery shopping and bathing her mum.

She said: “Crossroads Care has pointed me in the right direction for accessing the help available.

“Just coming into the centre a couple of times a week is a great help because it provides me with the chance to be out of the house.

“Crossroads Care has also given me the opport-unity to meet other young carers and know I am not alone in what I deal with.

“Hearing their experiences and stories of what they have missed out on is really helpful.”

The young carer left high school without qualifications and was not able to carry on to further education — but is now looking into apprenticeship opportunities.

She added: “My education suffered most of all as I missed a lot of school growing up and often did not have time to do my schoolwork.

“My advice to young carers is to make sure your teachers know the situation you are in.

“I never got that — at school it was just assumed I was a nuisance child, but people did not understand what I had to do at home.

“Going out with my friends is not really an option. I do try to see them, but if I get a text or call from my mum telling me she needs me home, that has to be my first priority.”

Lesley Bullen, data protection manager at The Co-operative, helped to organise the event — which saw the band receive a standing ovation.

She said: “There are people in our community taking on incredible levels of practical and emotional caring responsibilities for loved ones.

“The money raised by The Co-operative during 2013 will enable Carers Trust to provide desperately needed breaks, information, advice, support and services for 14 to 25-year-olds facing the challenges of caring.

“I would like to thank Arrival UK, Bury Met and Crossroads Care for all their help and support.”