An art group that supports young carers has been given a £58,000 donation from BBC Children in Need.

Dover smART Project provides a break and a chance to socialise for as many as 70 young carers aged five to 18.

Dawn Maddison, group co-ordinator, said: “We haven’t stopped smiling since we learned we had received the donation.

“This will allow us to run twice-weekly groups for young carers for the next three years.”

Among those Dover smART helps is Jess Brooks, 14, of Melbourne Avenue, Dover, who cares for her father, Mike Brazier.

He is paralysed with Devic’s neurological disease and has to live in a specially-adapted flat off nearby Pilgrims Way.

He is paralysed with Devic’s neurological disease and has to live in a specially-adapted flat off nearby Pilgrims Way.

Jess, who regularly visits to care for him, goes to the Dover smART meeting on Monday afternoons and Saturday mornings.

She says: “We know we are not on our own. I met my two best friends there. We can talk if we want to.”

Laura Graham, Dover smART co-ordinator, said: “These young carers may be tired as they have been up through the night or at a hospital bedside.

“Or they are distracted as they have worries beyond their years. There ‘but for the grace’ go us all.

“Art is a conduit. It gets people talking, relaxing and leads to a sense of achievement.”

Offshoots of Dover smART include employment workshops and there are plans for a street food cafe, a social enterprise that will be run by the young carers themselves.

There are more than 800 young carers in Dover district dealing with family illness and the effects of addiction.

Dover smART Project was set up in 2013 to offer free creative activities to children in deprived parts of Dover.

It believes these activities bring people together, build their confidence and stave off loneliness and mental health problems.

The service is also needed by people with dementia, the elderly, Pilgrims Hospices patients and homeless people from Dover’s Porchlight project.

The annual BBC Children in Need telethon is from 7.30pm tonight on BBC1.