my niece is down please advise!!

[johnnybear71]

my niece is 15 and is a star to her mum, cleaning and looking after her younger siblings. My sister is 41 and heavily pregnant (23 weeks) and is suffering from PDD so finds it very difficult to do anything at the moment. The problem is that my niece goes to school then picks the other up after and then comes home to do the housework, cleaning and homework. She has only 2 friends and if i'm honest not good ones.....she has no confidence and no life to be a 15 yo girl. I know her mum needs her help but she needs time for herself but we have nothing in our area that she could go to.....she is very innocent which of course is sweet but leaves herself open to silly boys....she doesn't really have anyone she can talk to about boys and their ways...she knows about the birds and the bees just not the emotional side of it and i worry that she could be taken advantage of...I don't really know how to help...could someone give me some advice?

[gemblags1980]

Hi a couple of suggestions could your sister get in touch with the local sure start and or her midwife to see if there are any other people who could support ? Or could the family do a rota ? Don't get me wrong it's great your niece wants to help out, but at the same time she needs encouragement to have a life and interests of her own.

Could you get in touch with your local youth service and see what schemes they could offer to support your niece, and build relationships with people her own age, could be one to one to start with and then build up to groups. Your niece may also be eligible for younger carers and it may be worth contacting school to see what support they are able to offer.
Good Luck
Gemma