I'm in Care
Being in care is when you live away from your parents. It could be with foster parents, other family members, in a care home, a residential school or secure accommodation.
YOU ARE NOT ALONE....In Cornwall there are about 450 children and young people in care at any one time.
Here is more information about being in care and the types of home you may live in.
What support can I have when I am in care?
Depending on what you think you want or need, you can get support from:
- Your social worker, foster carer, designated teacher at school or other worker that you feel able to open up to
- Carefree Cornwall – Carefree works with young people, aged 11-25, who are in and leaving care. Their aim is to give young people in and leaving care the chance to do things for themselves and others.
- On The Isles of Scilly children's services work to recruit foster carers and short breaks carers to ensure children and young people have a family life. They work closely with Cornwall Council if children need to live in care.
- Care leavers are also entitled to ongoing support. There is more information from the Government available here and locally you can refer yourself to a range of activities, pop up days and events provided by Carefree.
While you're in care, you may hear words and phrases that you don't understand. This jargon buster is A-Z of being in care and has been developed by Gloucestershire County Council.
There are also some additional words you might hear in Cornwall and Isles of Scilly and what they mean.
Read More
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Accommodated
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Another word for being in care
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Child Plan
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A child plan is a written document that says how and where you are going to live and be looked after. You should be involved in deciding on what goes in the plan and reviewing it every few months. If you have any special needs such as for health reasons or have a special diet, this will all be recorded in your plan. It may also include details of any clubs you are part of or other activities that you like to do on a regular basis, as well as detailing which school you go to and details of contact with family, relatives and friends.
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Children's Rights Advocate
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In Cornwall you will have a Children’s Rights Advocate (CRA). This is the person who attends your reviews and whose job it is to make sure you are informed and listened to – watch this video to learn more about what a CRA does. In other parts of the country the person who does this role is sometimes called an Independent Reviewing Officer (IRO).
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Designated Teacher
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A designated teacher is someone that helps you to do your best at school and get the support you need. |
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GetTogether
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You may also hear people calling it "contact". It is the time when you catch up with family. GetTogether time is different for every young person and depends on weighing up what is best for you so that you get to stay in touch with your family but not harmed any more. Some children and young people see family quite often, others only a couple of times a year. Sometimes it will be out in the community or at a family hub with support workers to make sure everything goes ok. It's important that you have a say in what you want with GetTogether and also understand that your social worker will be thinking about how to keep you safe.
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Independent Advocate
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An Independent Advocate is someone who does not work for the local authority. Their job is to support you, protect your rights and help you speak out.
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Review
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This is when you get together with your Children's Rights Advocate to discuss what is in your child plan and give your views. It happens at least every six months. You can have it as a meeting and you can decide who comes along, or you can meet with your Children's Rights Advocate and they will then catch up with everyone else to agree what needs to be in your plan.
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Statutory Visit
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These are visits from your social worker who must come to see you at least once every six weeks to see how you are and to listen to anything you want to share or ask. These visits can be at your foster home or out and about, like going for a walk or getting a drink in a café. Social workers will ask to see your bedroom from time to time as they have a responsibility to make sure you have a safe and comfortable room to sleep in.
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If you want to know more, or the word you are looking for is not here, ask your social worker, foster carer or designated teacher who can explain it to you.
Your Rights
Article 20 of The United Convention on the Rights of The Child is about children who are unable to live with their family.
Read more
Article 20 of the UNCRC says that services must
- Make sure you get special protection and support
- Find you alternative care that is stable
- Respect your culture, language, religion and background
What This means for You
As a young person in care, you have important rights, including:
- Support to help you deal with difficult experiences
- Contact with your family, as long as it’s safe for you
- Being listened to when decisions are made about your life
- Having your wishes and feelings taken seriously
This doesn’t mean you will always get everything you want, but adults must make sure your voice is heard.
If you ever feel that your rights aren’t being respected or if something is bothering you, you should speak to:
Your Children’s Rights Advocate, or
Any trusted adult who can support you or speak up for you like your foster carer, social worker, Independent Advocate, Youth Worker or other support worker. If the issue cannot be sorted out informally (by talking and negotiating with those people already supporting you), you can make a complaint to the local authority.
If you live in residential accommodation such as a children’s home or hospital here is more information about your rights.
Twice a year, care experienced young people take over Cornwall’s Corporate Parenting Board. In the spring they highlight the three most important things that they want the Corporate Parenting Board to change, and in the autumn, they ask the Board to feed back to them on their progress. This helps to influence the care and services young people experience.
Other sources of support and information
If you’re a child in care, living away from home, have a social worker or are a care leaver under 25, Help at Hand can offer you free support, advice and information, for example,
- Here are some FAQs (frequently asked questions) if you are in care
- Here are some FAQs if you are a care leaver
- Here are some FAQs if you are not a British Citizen
BECOME have a Care Advice Service for children in care and care leavers – available here.
The Children's Commissioner in England has information and a helpline if you need it.
Pledges
Cornwall Council have made seven pledges to children and young people in care
- To find the best available home for you
- To help you stay in touch with your family and friends
- To help you stay healthy
- To support you to do your best at school and college
- To help and support you to move on from care
- To help you to participate and make sure your voice is heard in the decisions about you
- To help you stay and feel safe