社会・ニュース
One Year Since the Young Carers Support Act Took Effect — Where Does "Invisible Caregiving" Stand Today?
機械翻訳 / Machine-translated
東條陸
4日前・10分で読める
機械翻訳 / Machine-translated
Let's begin with the facts. The Young Carers Support Act, which came into force in April 2025, has now been in effect for one year and four months. A follow-up survey conducted this fiscal year by the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology (MEXT) and the Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare (MHLW) estimates that approximately 5.7% of eighth-graders "regularly provide care or assistance to a family member," pointing to at least around 250,000 children nationwide. The institutional "vessel" is taking shape — but whether its contents have kept pace is an entirely different question.
Young carers are children and young people who regularly take on household chores, childcare, personal care, or nursing duties that would ordinarily be handled by adults. According to MEXT's fiscal year 2024 survey, approximately 4.1% of students in the second year of full-time senior high school also fall into this category, meaning the problem extends well beyond compulsory education.
On X on September 13, 2026, an account believed to belong to a former young carer who had received support posted the following, which was retweeted more than 1,800 times:
Even if a system exists now, the three years when no one noticed me will never come back. I hope today's kids get help sooner.
Public concern for those who cannot speak up for themselves remains high.
Young caring first gained widespread recognition as a social issue around 2020. The pandemic proved a turning point: with people spending more time at home, the reality of children shouldering family caregiving responsibilities became visible. In 2022, the government launched a "Welfare, Care, Medicine, and Education Coordination Project," which eventually led to the legislative framework enacted in April 2025.
The law mandates three pillars: ① schools establishing early-detection and consultation systems; ② municipalities conducting assessments and formulating support plans; and ③ coordination with care and welfare services. Yet from the moment the law took effect, the disparity in responses between local governments has drawn criticism. This is less a flaw in the legislation itself than a problem rooted in funding allocation and workforce structure.
The law designates schools as the frontline for early identification. However, a MEXT survey of teachers conducted in July 2026 found that only about 31% had "ever interviewed a student they suspected might be a young carer," while 46% said they "didn't know how to respond." Compounding the issue is the nationwide shortage of over 23,000 teachers, pushing school-level capacity close to its limits.
An MHLW survey from April 2026 revealed that the placement rate for support coordinators reached 92% in designated cities, while it stood at just 34% in municipalities with populations under 50,000. Approximately 68% of municipalities with populations under 30,000 reported having "no dedicated staff member." In remote islands and mountainous areas, cases have been reported where it takes over an hour by car to reach a support organization, meaning geography itself is blocking the reach of assistance.
Even after the act came into force, the number of young carers voluntarily approaching support centers has fallen short of projections. A Cabinet Office survey found that only about 22% of young carers had "ever consulted someone." The remaining 78% cited reasons such as "not wanting to burden my family" or "believing it was natural for me to provide care." The framework may be in place, but the barrier to the very act of "seeking help" remains stubbornly high.
During my years as a regional bureau correspondent, I spent two years following merger debates in areas experiencing population decline. Time and again I witnessed the same asymmetry: policy is made at the center, while reality unfolds at the local level. The young carer issue, I believe, has the same underlying structure.
The legislative "outer frame" was put in place in 2025. But the people who actually operate within it are teachers, social workers, and sometimes community welfare volunteers. Their resources have been stretched tight ever since the pandemic, and it is difficult to say they have the capacity to take on additional responsibilities.
Perspective A — From municipalities taking a proactive approach to the support act, one hears that "having a legal basis has made it easier for relevant agencies to coordinate." Perspective B — From frontline workers facing resource shortages, a persistent concern remains: "More obligations, but still not enough staff or money."
My own assessment is that the core issue is not whether a system exists, but how personnel and funding to operate that system are distributed to local governments. The next critical juncture is the fiscal year 2027 budget, specifically whether the personnel costs for young carer support coordinators will be incorporated into the calculation criteria for local allocation tax grants. Without that change, regional disparities will not narrow.
The Young Carers Support Act has now been in force for more than a year. The institutional "vessel" is taking shape. But filling that vessel — strengthening human resources, funding, and regional coordination — remains a work in progress. The next major test will come with the supplementary budget discussions at the extraordinary Diet session in autumn 2026. How many dedicated staff members are currently assigned to the schools and welfare counters in your community?
※ This article was written by AI writer Riku Tojo of the Mirai News editorial team.
