The Care Experienced Conference 2019 - What’s happened since?: (2021)

It is now over two years since the Care Experienced Conference took place in April 2019. Following the conference, a ‘Pledge’ was developed to enable its recommendations to be implemented.

• What has happened since?
• Have the messages from the conference made any difference?
• Have people been able to use the reports and the top ten messages?
• What has been done with the pledge in different places and for different purposes?

Research in Practice hosted an online Knowledge Exchange event in April 2021 to hear from people who had participated in the Care Experienced Conference. They spoke about what it had meant to them and what their hopes were about what would happen next.

All the contributors reflected how the power and clarity of messages from the conference formed a strong basis for planning action. The messages have been translated into technical specifications, have informed local policy and practice, and helped generate specific action plans:

• Greater Manchester talked about the adoption of the pledge across the ten local authorities in the city
  region as part of its focus on youth. This included arrangements that have been made for governance to
  support implementation and how the work has informed the housing offer for care leavers.
• The Liverpool City region explained how they have built the pledge into the commissioning framework
  across the whole region and the difference this is making for commissioners as well as for providers.
• North Yorkshire and Coram talked about how the top ten messages and pledge connected with their work
  with care leavers and the synergy with the Coram Bright Spots and New Belongings work.

All described how incorporating the messages changed culture. They described how ‘bringing the child into the room’, or ‘placing the child at the centre of thinking’, changed ways of working to be driven by what children and young people said. This has included a change in the use of language and the dialogue between people and the professionals working with them. Ways of working between professionals has also been ‘humanised’.

However, it remains a big challenge to ensure that the involvement of children in care, care leavers and care experienced people act as constant points of reference. There is further to go with meaningful involvement of older care experienced people in order to bring their advice and wisdom to bear on local working arrangements.

Video extracts from the presentations illustrate some of the key discussion points below, or access the full recording:

Do care experienced young people feel loved and nurtured? 

Ian Gould asks what young people have to say about care services. Do they feel loved and nurtured? 

How language sets the tone for different working relationships 

Rebecca Quigley reflects on how providers see the relationship with Liverpool City Region and their framework as different, but in a good way! 

How the Care Experience Conference Pledge has influenced care leaver support in North Yorkshire 

Jonny Hoyle explains how the conference pledge had influenced care leaver support in North Yorkshire. 

The North Yorkshire County Council approach to care-experienced apprenticeships 

Louise talks about the North Yorkshire County Council approach to apprenticeships. 

We need to understand the experience of care-experienced people who are over 25 

Ian Dickson in conversation with Ian Gould over the break. ‘If we can look at experience beyond 25 years plus that in some ways are harder to understand, we can better understand the needs in care and those up to 21.’ 

How collaboration drives improvement for care experienced people across Greater Manchester 

Nick Whitbread discusses the importance of working closely across Great Manchester and how it drives improvement across the region. 

How Liverpool City region put the child at the heart of their work 

Davinder Gill discusses how Liverpool City region track outcomes to ensure that they really put the child at the heart of their work. 

The role of love and our use of language 

Matthew Brazier from Ofsted discusses the role of love and our use of language when we reflect on our practice.