Young people take part in Children’s Homes Inquiry

On 31 January 2022, we supported three care-experienced young people to take part in a private session at parliament with the Education Select Committee.

As part of the ongoing Children’s Home Inquiry, young people with lived experience of residential care were invited to share their experiences with the member MPs and answer their questions. The findings will inform the Committee’s conclusions and recommendations to government.

We want to say a big thank you to Jade, Jordan, and Meg for sharing their experiences and speaking so passionately about what needs to change. They discussed developing plans for future care leavers to feel stable in adult life, extending discrimination laws, improving higher education participation, and whether care-experience should be a protected characteristic.

Jade mentioned how frequent moves in care had disrupted her education and her support network, as well the barriers she faced with social workers not looking after her cultural needs. Jade, Jordan and Meg also shared their experiences of how important it is to have a clear educational health plan that captures all their needs before you close a young person’s case.

The Care Cliff was also discussed, and the fear young people have of reaching 18 or 25 when the care system no longer provides support.

The MPs were so impressed by the young people that they asked for their permission to produce case studies from their stories and include them within the inquiry report.

We strongly advocated for the involvement of care-experienced young people in this inquiry, and we are pleased to see the Education Select Committee inviting care-experienced young people to share their views. It is crucial that those with lived experience are listened to.

Would you like to join Jade, Jordan, and Meg and fight for change in the care system? Find out more about how you can get involved here.