Are you a professional working with care experienced young people?
It is important that we recognise the challenges faced by care leavers and acknowledge the power we have to change policy and practice. New findings from the National Leaving Care Benchmarking Forum (NLCBF) at Catch22 paint a picture of what it is like being a care experienced young person in 2024.
'In Their Own Words' is a series of reports being released for National Care Leavers Week. The reports, from the Young People’s Benchmarking Forum (YPBMF), focus on five key themes, chosen as priority areas by care experienced young people.
These are cost of living, mental health, communities of support, safe and affordable homes, and support after 21 and 25 years of age.
The findings are based on a survey of over 200 care experienced individuals, across the UK. Some of the key headlines include:
- 77% reported they were struggling to buy food at least some of the time.
- 62% find it difficult to get the mental health support they need.
- 31% have a formal diagnosis, but a further 35% believe they are neurodivergent with many saying it is difficult to get the diagnosis or support that they need.
- The majority of care experienced individuals do not know what support is available after the age of 21.
- Mental health challenges and transport issues are some of the most common barriers to accessing community services and support.
The reports have been co-produced with care experienced young people from YPBMF from the start of the process - selecting the topics, designing the survey questions, analysing the results and sharing solutions they believe will make a difference.
What is the ‘Radiator Key’ challenge?
Each year, as I bleed the air out of my radiators in my home with a radiator key, it strikes me that such a small piece of metal could make such a difference to the temperature of my home and my experience of living there.
While none of us may be able to address all the challenges care experienced young people face, I believe we all hold a small radiator key of influence.
We may be able to impact an individual care experienced young person through listening well and opening up doors for them.
We may also have the opportunity to influence at an organisation level the way we support care experienced young people who are applying to work for the organisation or we may be able to remove barriers around the cost of living at a local authority or national level.
There are links and quotes from the reports below. As you take a look consider the following:
Which radiator key am I holding? What can I do that will change the experiences of care experienced young people?
The Communities of Support Report asks for a varierty of opportunities to be provided.
'Specifically for care experienced individuals, communities of support are arguably even more important as by nature of being care experienced, you may have been uprooted from one environment to another.'
Dyllan, YPBMF Champion, Foreword, Communities of Support Report
The Safe and Affordable Homes Report asks for better support with housing.
'Throughout this survey, we saw that a lot of care experienced young people are placed in accommodation in areas with a lot of crime and people who are unsafe. Many are left to deal with this on their own, which affects their mental health. No adult wants to feel unsafe and scared in their own house or neighbourhood, so why is it ok for care experienced young people and adults to feel this way?'
Esla, YPBMF Champion, Foreword, Safe and Affordable Accommodation Report
The Cost of Living Report asks for more support financially.
'This is still a major problem for care experienced individuals today especially when living independently or without the same family support networks that many others can fall back on….. I hope this report helps you understand what it would be like to walk in our shoes and helps you think about what you can do to help change our lives.'
Mark, YPBMF Champion, Foreword, Cost of Living Report
The Mental Health & Health Report asks for more research and funding for different conditions.
'It is so important for care experienced young people to access health and mental health care, yet the systems that exist often struggle to meet their unique needs. From moving areas and finding new support services to long wwaiting lists and services that don’t fully understand their circumstances, care experienced individuals often encounter significant obstacles when trying to get the help they need.'
Nathan, YPBMF Legend, Foreword, Mental Health & Health Report
The Support after 21 and 25 Report asks for better provision and guidance for care leavers as they get older.
'Post 21 & 25 support is important to me because I’m approaching 25 and have been in the social system for 20 years. I rely on the care from my leaving care team, these people are my rock, they know everything about me. I know the financial support is going to end soon but it’s so much more than just financial. I turn 25 soon and my PA and leaving care team have all reassured me that they aren’t washing their hands of me, and this gives me a sense of security. Not everyone has that, but everyone should have that. It should be mandatory.'
Reece, YPBMF Legend, Foreword, Support after 21 and 25 years of age Report
As well as painting a clear picture of what life is like in 2024 for care experienced individuals, these findings demonstrate the power and potential in co-producing solutions with care experienced young people.
I’d like to thank everybody who took part in the survey and in the process of co-producing the survey, event and report.
We have an opportunity at the moment with a new government, together with the highest public awareness and empathy around care experience that we’ve ever had to really make a difference. There’s an urgency to ensure that we can make a difference for care experienced young people today, as well as those who will leave care in the future.
And so back to the ‘Radiator Key’ Challenge:
Which Radiator key are you holding? What can you do that will change the experiences of care experienced young people?