North and South Ayrshire Carers.
Eleven young carers from South and North Ayrshire, accompanied by care support staff, have taken part in the third Young Carers Festival 2010, organised by the Princess Royal Trust for Carers.
Held at the Broomlee Outdoor Centre, West Linton, the Festival offered 450 other young people from all over Scotland a chance to unwind and relax with a packed programme of fun and activities.
The event was also attended by Provost Winifred Sloan who said: "This weekend allows our young people the opportunity to be themselves, to take part in a number of fun activities and is a much needed chance to rest and relax away from the hard work of being a carer."
Other invited dignitaries to the Festival including Adam Ingram MSP, Minister for Children accompanied by Shona Robison, Minister for Public Health and Sport and a number of MSPs.
The significance of the weekend has been recognised by the Scottish Government who pay for the Festival.
The two previous Festivals and national public consultation exercises have given young carers a platform to voice their views, leading to a new strategy for Young Carers being drawn up by Scottish Government.
New figures have shown that almost 90 per cent of Scottish young carers feel their schools and GPs do little or nothing to support them – despite the fact they save the public purse almost £8 billion a year.
Provost Sloan continued: "This strategy is only the beginning and will evolve over time to recognise and provide the support these amazing young people need."
"I am delighted to support the event be able to express my own thanks to The Princess Royal Trust for Carers who organised it.
"A huge amount of hard work has gone into this and I would particularly like to applaud the unstinting efforts of Lorna Goodwin, Scottish Young Carers Festival Coordinator and Louise Morgan, Young Carers Service Manager from the Princess Royal Trust for Carers.
"There were many other people involved to which I must say a huge thank you but Lorna and Louise two kept the weekend alive and vibrant with their boundless fun and effervescent energy.
"I was especially impressed by the Festival finale which included a question and answer session and a DVD of the week-end, set to the wonderful song from Dirty Dancing 'I've had the time of my life'.
"This was very emotional and many tears were shed."
Provost Sloan concluded: "The weekend came to a close with an energetic Zumba session, which I had originally intended to take part in.
However, discretion prevailed and I went away enthralled and entranced by the energy and dedication of all the young carers, at the end of a superb and truly inspirational weekend!"