Corporate parenting projects
As a council, we are committed to listening to children and young people in our care and providing them with a wide range of opportunities enabling them to make the decisions about how they want to get involved. This provides young people with opportunities to develop their skills and level of understanding in areas most relevant to their own interests and personal development.
There are many areas in which children and young people in care can be involved. Given effective training and support for both young people and staff, the following list illustrates the areas of involvement for them within the design, delivery and evaluation of services:
Training Workshops for Young People – ‘Peer Care Consultants’
The Corporate Parenting Team is running training workshops with young people looked after or leaving care to become ‘Peer Care Consultants.’ This means they can receive accredited training in an area of interest including ‘recruitment panels’, ‘interviewing young people’ and ‘training for trainers’. This is an extension of the work young people have already been doing and offers other young people looked after and leaving care a chance to get involved. For more information, please contact the Corporate Parenting Team on 020 7926 7084.
‘Peer Care Trainers’ - young people as trainers
A group of young people have been actively involved in training social workers, foster carers and health professionals around ‘effective communication’ with young people. They have also presented at major conferences including ‘Community Care Live 2007’ and the 2008 Social Care Conference with much success.
‘Peer Care Recruiters’ - Young people on recruitment panels
A group of young people looked after have been trained to sit on recruitment panels for permanent social work and management staff in children’s Social Care. They have helped to recruit a number of deputy managers within the council.
The second phase of this initiative, ‘Peer Care Recruiters’, has now begun. This will encompass the delivery of a rolling programme of training for young people aged 13-24 throughout the year and their involvement in more interview processes.
‘Peer Care Consultants’ – Young people assessing care standards
A group of ten young people looked after aged 16 to 24 years have been trained as ‘Peer Care Consultants’ giving them the skills to interview other young people about their experiences in care. This project is being led by the Corporate Parenting and Strategic Commissioning Teams and is being supported by a care leaver who has experience in training young people from the Youth Council around Peer Inspection.
During summer 2008, the Peer Care Consultants will be interviewing between 20 to 40 looked after young people who are currently residing in independent provisions by Lambeth Council to assess the quality of care they are receiving.
Young people will meet with senior officers and present their findings. This is a project being run by young people, for young people and is a commitment to both assessing and improving the standards of care they are receiving.
Paid employment opportunities within Lambeth Council
Young people looked after and leaving the care of Lambeth Council (aged 16 to 24 years) have been given the opportunity to apply for a paid work placement within various Lambeth Council departments. A minimum of 12 placements are being offered each year for a three month duration.
Placements are available for either full-time or part-time working hours. These employment opportunities will enable young people to develop skills, confidence, knowledge and experience when applying for future work and may provide pathways to further opportunities within the council or partner agencies. Placements are commencing initially within Human Resources, Information Technology, Customer Service and Children and Young People’s Service and will start in August 2008.
Work experience and shadowing opportunities
Children and young people looked after participated in the ‘Teenagers to Work’ work experience scheme in 2007. Due to the success of this project a new rolling programme of unpaid work experience placements are being offered each year to looked after young people aged 15 – 18 years. Placements will be of two weeks duration within various Lambeth Council departments. Young people are also being given the chance to shadow a senior manager within the council. In 2007 ten young people spent a day each shadowing the Chief Executive of the council and the Divisional Director of Social Care to see how things run ‘behind the scenes’.
Leisure Passes
Lambeth children looked after and care leavers, who have been looked after for at least six months, are entitled to a free annual ‘REAL Sport’ Lambeth leisure membership.
This gives them free access to swimming, the fitness gym, the energy zone, one booked session per day (e.g. squash, badminton etc.), free hire of equipment (a deposit is required) and some of the offered exercise classes.
Courses are not included in the REAL sport membership but holders will receive the same discount as standard pay monthly members.
Young people can apply by contacting their social worker, personal advisor or contact us directly on 020 7926 8566 or email info@g2k.org.uk.
Celebration Event – ‘Reach for the stars’
The Corporate Parenting Team organise an annual ‘Reach for the Stars’ award ceremony for looked after children and care leavers during the winter each year to celebrate the individual achievements of children and young people. Looked after children and young people can be nominated for an award between September to December for educational achievement, excellent progress, dedication and hard work and/or making a positive contribution.
Each year, over 500 people attend the awards ceremonies with over 200 young people receiving awards.
G2K Website
We have developed a website just for children and young people looked after by Lambeth Council called www.get2know.org.uk. The site is designed to be a communication tool with regular updates, consistent information, discussion forums and SMS. This website was designed and developed by a group of young people looked after by the council who worked closely with the Corporate Parenting Team and the website designer.
In June 2008 the G2K website won a national ‘Positive Images’ award from Children and Young People Now for ‘Best Interactive Media’ entry for a project by young people, for young people.
'Our Life' Song by Young People
A group of thirty children and young people aged 5 – 16 years looked after by Lambeth Council have written and recorded a song titled 'Our Life' following consultation with the Corporate Parenting Team about the pledge for children looked after.
The messages in the song convey young people’s wishes and feelings around the promises they want from social workers and foster carers, however also extend to all key professionals that work directly with children and young people looked after, including schools and health professionals. The key messages throughout the song are about building trust and sets out examples on how professionals can improve relationships with children and young people looked after. To read the lyrics to the song please click here. To find out more about the song or to obtain a copy of the CD please contact the Corporate Parenting Team on 020 7926 5263.
Information session for corporate parents
Materials have been produced to deliver briefing sessions to Lambeth’s elected members on their role as corporate parents to children and young people looked after. The information sessions will explore the government’s white paper 'Care matters: Time to deliver for children in care’ and will refresh elected members on their responsibilities as corporate parents to children looked after.
Magic and Maths workshop for children looked after
A two day workshop is being held on 21 and 22 August 2008 on the “Magic and Mystery of Mathematics” in collaboration with the Mathematics Consultant during the summer holidays for looked after children aged 6-11. The workshop aims to break down the emotional and psychological barriers to success in Mathematics and to build the confidence of young people. For more information, please contact the Corporate Parenting Team on Tel: 020 7926 8564.
Children’s Rights Officer
A new Children’s Rights Officer role is being developed in the Corporate Parenting Team and will be providing advocacy for looked after children and care leavers through consultation, one-to-one support and raising the common themes and issues identified by young people looked after. For more information on this initiative and when it will commence please contact the Corporate Parenting Team Manager on 020 7926 5263.
Summer Read
In partnership with Reading is Fundamental, we will be running the Summer Read again in August 2008 which will enable 30 children looked after aged 5 – 11 years an opportunity to participate in two events. Young people will receive a book bag and will choose two free books on magic and mystery. These events will be run in conjunction with the “Mathemagician” workshops during the summer and aims to encourage and promote a love of reading.
Education Champions
Education Champions are senior officers within the council who act as a looked after young person’s silent advocate; working behind the scenes to track and monitor a young person’s progress to improve educational outcomes and provisions for that young person. Champions do not have any contact with their young person and act as their ‘pushy parent’. This scheme is running for young people looked after entering into year 10 for the 2008-2009 academic school year. It is hoped that in the future, the Education Champion’s Scheme will be rolled out to senior officers within other departments and will also involve children looked after from other key stages.
5 to 11 years Consultation and Participation activities
The Corporate Parenting Team run fun participation activities for children looked after aged between 5 to 11 years every holiday period. These have included writing and recording a song, animations at the Tate Modern and a Sports Day. For information on the next holiday activity please contact the Corporate Parenting Team on Tel: 020 7926 8564.
11-16 Consultation Group
The Corporate Parenting Team run a Consultation Group for 11-16 year olds fortnightly to give young people looked after a chance to voice the issues that are paramount for them, with a view to improving service delivery and positive outcomes for them. At present the group is working on an animation project centered on children’s rights which will be given to young people when they come into care.
Youth Group: Drop in 11 to 16 years olds
The Corporate Parenting Team are working with an ex-care leaver to develop a new drop-in service for looked after children and young people to come and enjoy a range of activities in a comfortable and relaxed environment. They will get the opportunity to meet with other young people and once a month a nominated speaker will come and discuss issues that are relevant to them; this will include the advocacy worker and a health worker. This new scheme will replace the 11 to 16 years Consultation Group and will be launched in the autumn 2008. For more information please contact the Corporate Parenting team on Tel: 020 7926 5196.