Skip over main navigation
  • Log in
  • Basket: (0 items)
  • Email Us
  • 0141 465 7511
  • Search
Staf (Scottish Throughcare and Aftercare Forum)
  • Newsletter Sign-up
  • Book for an Event
  • The Real Toolkit

We listen. We care. We love.
  • Twitter
Menu
  • Who We Are
    • About Staf
      • History
      • Members
      • Supporters
      • Vision and Values
    • Meet the Team
      • Board of Directors
      • Staff Team
    • Governance
      • Latest Accounts
      • Strategic Plan 2019-2022
    • Vacancies
  • What We Do
    • Moving On Change Programme
    • Care-Experienced Voice
    • Current Projects
      • Learning Channel
      • Youth Justice Voices
      • Inside Out
      • National Leadership Network
      • The Real Toolkit
      • Shannon's Box
      • Project Return
      • Home and Belonging
    • Participation
      • Participation Network
      • Participation Practitioner's Forum
    • Get Involved
    • Trauma Informed Practice
    • Policy and Influencing
    • Training and Consultancy
    • View Previous Work
      • Young Funder's Grant
      • The Debate Project
      • Dinner With Dialogue
      • The Voices
      • Connecting Voices
      • The Importance of Relationships
      • #WeLove: sharing COVID-19 best practice
  • Events
    • Upcoming Events
    • Calendar of Events
    • Event Resources
  • News and Blogs
    • Blogs
    • News
    • Newsletter Archive
    • Podcasts
  • Policy and Resources
    • Financial Support for Care Leavers
    • The Independent Care Review
    • Legislation Timeline
    • Policy Areas
      • Children's Rights
      • Corporate Parenting
      • Education
      • Employment
      • Health
      • Housing
      • Justice
      • Poverty and Social Security
      • Relationships
    • Consultation Responses
    • Practice Resources
    • Event Resources
    • Coronavirus Support and Signposting
  • Membership
    • Become a Member
    • Current Members
    • Upgrade Membership
  • Pages
  • Admin
    • Log in
    • Email Us
    • 0141 465 7511
    • Search
  • Basket: (0 items)
  • Policy and Influencing

Policy and Influencing

Staf aims to promote policies that will support an environment with love at its heart; that promotes recovery from trauma; and where life chances are not determined by care experience. By doing so, we hope to achieve an environment where policy and practice ensures that our young people and workforce feel loved, safe and supported. To deliver this, we will hear, reflect and act on the views of our members, care leavers and all of those who support them. 

All of our influencing work will support our vision of a Scotland where the wellbeing and success of young people leaving care across Scotland is indistinguishable from that of their peers in the general population.

Cross Party Group on Care Leavers 

Staf are the secretariat of the Cross Party Group on care leavers which meets at least twice a year to discuss issues raised by the care experienced community to an audience of MSPs and changemakers. You can find out more about the CPG, view previous minutes and forthcoming meetings at the Scottish Parliament's website or you can email [email protected] to sign up to be a member. 

Where we’ve influenced 

  • In May 2020 we reported on the impact of COVID-19 on care leavers and those that support them. We found the pandemic had shed new light on loneliness, isolation, digital exclusion, food poverty and financial precarity.  
  • We took a deeper dive into how our member organisations were tackling these issues in our #WeLove report, published in June.  
  • We drew on three years of Care Leavers Into Employment Focus Group meetings to recommend a ‘Family Firm’ approach to supporting care leavers into work with  full report submitted the Scottish Parliament in August.  
  • Representation on Children in Scotland’s Children's Sector Strategic and Policy Forum, as well as the CCPS Committee on Care and Support for Children and Young People.  
  • Supporting calls for the UK Government to top-up child benefit and highlighting the importance to care-experienced parents.  
  • Calling for the Care Experienced Students Bursary to be increased and extended to year-round to ensure care leaver students are better supported during the summer.  
  • Calling for the £100 payment made to low-income families this Christmas to be extended to all care leavers.
  • The Youth Justice Visionaries were commissioned by the Scottish Government to engage with their care and justice experienced peers on Scotland’s new Vision and Action Plan for Youth Justice. And both groups gave their views on the UNCRC Incorporation Bill directly to the Convener of the Scottish Parliament Equality and Human Rights Committee.  
  • Promoted the interests of care leavers and those who support them at external forums. This has included attending the first SDS (Skills Development Scotland) Care Experience Focal Point meeting; Social Security Scotland’s new Corporate Parenting Champion’s Board; and the SFC (the Scottish Funding Council) Care Experience Governance Group.  
  • Attended roundtables hosted by the UK Money and Pension Advice Service on supporting the financial wellbeing of care-experienced young people, as well as ongoing participation in their Scottish Financial Education Forum. We’re now looking forward to being involved in specific work to support care-experienced young people to get a good financial education.  
  • We’ve begun a conversation with care leavers on the potential for a pilot care leaver Guaranteed Income – looking at how this policy could help ensure no young person leaving care lives in poverty. We look forward to continuing this conversation with partners, including Aberlour, CELCIS and Who Cares? Scotland.
  • We held our second Staf Summit in March, focusing on supporting shared learning between Corporate Parents and delivering The Promise. The asks from this will be shared with the Scottish Government. 
  • Quarterly Policy and Practice briefings sharing findings from our focus groups and project work with the Scottish Government, Funders and Senior Leaders in Local Government. 
  • We are secretariat to the Cross Party Group on Care Leavers. Email [email protected] to become a member. 

Growing our members’ voice

In addition to a continued focus on the transition to adulthood for care leavers, we will also work to influence policy and practice to achieve better outcomes for care leavers in terms of poverty, education, employment, housing, justice and health.

We deliver a range of opportunities for members to participate in this work:

  • the Care Leavers into Employment, Education and Training Focus Group;
  • the Implications of Continuing Care Focus Group;
  • the Supported Lodgings, Supported Carers Focus Group;
  • a Local Authority Members’ Forum; and
  • networking events for senior leaders, including the Staf Summit and webinars.

In addition, we have established short life working groups to look at specific areas of practice which includes looking at issues around Unaccompanied Asylum Seekers and Supported Carer paperwork. 

We also have a range of policy resources on our website where you can find out more about the following policy areas.

 

Education    Employment    Poverty and Social Security    Justice

 

Health    Housing    Relationships    Trauma    Children's Rights

 

Be a part of our platform

By becoming a Staf member and joining our network of more than 70 organisations, you can help us make sure we are advocating for the care legislation the sector needs. You’ll be able to contribute in a number of ways, including:

  • Forums 
  • Focus groups
  • Contributing to consultation responses
  • Online and telephone enquiries

Become a Staf member

Published: 29th November, 2017

Updated: 22nd August, 2023

Author:

Share this page
  • Email
  • Facebook
  • Twitter

Latest

  • Trauma informed practice roadmap published

    Trauma informed practice roadmap published

    The National Trauma Transformation Programme has designed a new roadmap to help services and organisations identify and reflect on progress, strengths and opportunities for embedding a trauma-informed and responsive approach across policy and practice.

  • Resources from Staf National Conference 2023

    Resources from Staf National Conference 2023

    On Wednesday 22 November members and partners alongside care experienced young people, attended our National Conference as we look to move beyond Plan 21 - 24.

  • Sign up to the 100 Days of Listening

    Sign up to the 100 Days of Listening

    Want to share your views on what's needed to deliver the promise for young people transitioning to adulthood? Then sign up to take part in the 100 Days of Listening.

  • Participation Practitioner's Forum

    Participation Practitioner's Forum

    Thursday 25th January 2024 | 10am - 11.30am | Online (Zoom)

Most read

  • Young Funder's Grant

    Young Funder's Grant

    Applications for the Young Funder's Grant are now closed. Alternative sources of funding are included here.

  • The Promise explained: what the Care Review means for the workforce

    The Promise explained: what the Care Review means for the workforce

    Scotland’s Independent Care Review has published its final conclusions. Five reports have been published and the main report ‘The Promise’ runs to 124 pages. To keep our members informed, we will set out the conclusions in a series of brief summaries.

  • Relationship Based Practice: What does it really look like?

    Relationship Based Practice: What does it really look like?

    Mary Glasgow facilitated one of our workshops at our Annual Conference 2017, setting out the principles of a restorative, child-centred and family-minded approach that aims to mitigate the effect of Adverse Childhood Experiences. Find out more and download Mary's presentation.

  • Grants of up to £750 available to care experienced young people

    Grants of up to £750 available to care experienced young people

    We are delighted to announce our Young Funder's Grant is now open for applications.

  • Local Elections 2022: Manifesto Round-Up

    Local Elections 2022: Manifesto Round-Up

    A look at the five main parties and their manifestos heading into the local elections 2022

  • Get Involved

    Here at Staf we have many ways for people with care experience to get involved.

  • Our history

    Our history

    Find out more about Staf's history, and the exciting work we are undertaking today.

  • Financial Support for Care Leavers

    Financial Support for Care Leavers

  • GIRFEC: A Guide to Getting it Right for Every Child

    GIRFEC: A Guide to Getting it Right for Every Child

    GIRFEC (or Getting it Right for Every Child) is the national approach in Scotland to improving outcomes and supporting the wellbeing of our children and young people by offering the right help at the right time for the right people. Find out more about the GIRFEC approach.

  • Shannon's Box

    Shannon's Box

    Created by Shannon when in role as our Youth Facilitator, Shannon's Box is designed to make entering care a little easier for children and young people. Find out more about this project.

Tag cloud

Project Return
Tweets by StafScot

Contact us

Scottish Throughcare and Aftercare Forum

Edward House, 2nd Floor, 199 Sauchiehall Street, Glasgow, G2 3EX

T: 0141 465 7511

Email Us

  • Twitter
  • Facebook
  • LinkedIn
  • Instagram
  • Sitemap
  • Accessibility
  • Privacy and Cookies Policy
  • Terms & Conditions


Accessibility: 
Black on white version | White on black version | Reset to standard style


Registered in Scotland as a Company Limited by Guarantee. Company Number: SC286432.

Recognised as a Scottish Charity. Scottish Charity Number SC 030522

   

Manage Cookie Preferences