On Wednesday 25th October 2023, as part of our care experienced week celebrations, we were delighted to welcome Scotland's First Minister to the Staf participation space as we launched the 100 Days of Listening and he announced the consultation on the Care Leaver Payment. 

The First Minister met with care experienced young adults, some of whom had taken part in the very first 100 Days of Listening session, sharing their views on what they would like to see change to ensure that the pledges around moving on from care in the Promise are realised. They were then able to share their thoughts with the First Minister, in a relaxed and safe space.

 

Alongside the 100 Days of Listening, the First Minister also announced the consultation on the Care Leaver Payment, a proposed one off payment of £2000 for young people transitioning from care. The consultation opens on Friday 3rd November.  

The feedback we received some of the care experienced young adults in attendance speaks for itself.

"It was fantastic to have Humza along to the Staf office today to chat with us all about what is important to us, what changes need to be made and what support should be in place for young people leaving care. Humza eagerly listened and is committed to driving positive, co-designed change. It felt a very positive space to be in and I am very hopeful for the future!" Aimee Thorpe 

"On the 25th of October, myself and a few of my care family met with the First Minister to speak him about our experiences of moving on from the care system. The First Minister yesterday as part of his Visit to the Staf Towers announced a £2,000 co-designed Care Leaver Payment to help young people transitioning from care the care system into adulthood. Being part of Staf and the 100 days of listening campaign. I was so heartened to hear The First Ministers determination & committed to keeping the promise to the care experienced community. It was amazing to see that from his meeting at Staf that he and his officials took away action points away to work on. The First Minister visiting organisations like Staf allow him to hear from us directly and given this week is Care Experienced week it was great to see him engaging with the care community and hear from us as to what is/isn't going well for us and coming up with solutions to make things better for future generations of care experienced people." Jeanette Miller 

The First Minister said, 

“The Scottish Government is committed to Keeping the Promise by 2030 to all of our children and young people. This includes making sure that all young people are given the support they need to transition from care into adulthood and more independent living.

“For any young person, at any age, moving away from home can be a challenging time when we rely heavily on family support networks. Many care experienced young people won’t have that luxury which many of us take for granted.

“Care experienced people are over one and a half times more likely to experience financial difficulties and have more than double the chance of experiencing homelessness, mainly before age 30. We also know that money management is a top concern for young people moving on from care.

“It is important we provide the right support at the right time for our care experienced young people – and the Care Leaver Payment will provide much needed financial support at such an important moment in their lives.”

Jo Derrick, Staf CEO said, 

“We were delighted to host the First Minister and a group of care experienced people at our participation space in Glasgow. There was a real sense of mutual respect while those with experience of the care system in Scotland shared changes they felt were important to be made and the First Minister listened. We are optimistic about a continued open dialogue on delivering The Promise and I’d encourage care leavers and workforce alike to join our 100 days of listening to inform the next stages of the Moving On strategy for Scotland.”

Thomas Carlton, Moving On Strategic Lead said 

The Moving On Change Programme intends to evoke, initiate, and sustain changes in practice, policy and legislation and culture to inform resourcing. The launch of the 100 days of listening at the start of care experience week brings us closer to achieving this aspiration.

The second, of five phases, of the ‘Moving On’ change programme is seeking to hear from all moving on experts – including the care workforce and those with experience of care. Last week is the start of hearing from these moving on experts and it was phenomenal to witness the Frist Minister continue to demonstrate the national government's commitment to hear directly from those affected by care, as her partook in one of our group sessions.

Last week the 100 Days of listening engaged with small groups of people with experience of care, listened at a college celebration event, also with attendees to support the wellbeing of those with experience of care, held 1:1 conversations and launched our survey online to try and make this phase of the change programme as accessible as possible for anyone who would wish to contribute.

It is exciting to be pursuing this work and the greater challenge for us all with be to act upon what we hear during this phase of the programme." 

You can find out more about the Moving On Change Programme and how to take part in the 100 Days of Listening here. 

Further information about the Care Leaver Payment is available here with the consultation available from Friday 3rd November.