Today (Friday 16 February) marks the 9th annual Care Day – a national day dedicated to celebrating and connecting the care experienced community.
Leading the local celebrations were members and supporters of the Moray Champions Board. Made up of care experienced young people from throughout Moray, the Board provides an opportunity for young people to come together to share views, stories and experiences with the aim of creating positive change.
Champions Shannon MacPherson and Isla MacDougal, along with Katrina McKeown (6), were joined by Councillors Kathleen Robertson, Leader of Moray Council, and Civic Leader, John Cowe, for the raising of Morayโs Care Day flag on the rooftop of the council headquarters in Elgin. Young pipers Jack Phillipson, a member of the Champions Board, and Rhys Sutherland accompanied them.
Isla explained that Care Day is important to everyone. She said: โItโs good to get the care community together to connect and hear about what we have been doing in the Champions Board and what we have planned.โ
A reception following the ceremony, which was attended by over 60 corporate parents, celebrated the Champions Boardโs achievements over the past year, including how they were instrumental in securing funding for a project looking at how relationships between care leavers and corporate parents can be maintained and leading the way in the commissioning of the new Moray Childrenโs Rights advocacy service.
The morning of events also saw the first public screening of a short film created by the champions to draw attention to the issue of stigma care experienced young people face.
Supported by Moray Councilโs Through Care After Care Team, Promise Team, Youth Work Team and Police Scotland, the young people drew on their own experiences to create the video which they hope will help educate others to the negative stereotypes and misconceptions care experienced young people encounter.
They end the film by calling for greater effort to promote awareness, create inclusive environments, change policies and provide opportunities for children and young people to foster supportive relationships. This, they say, is a first step to โdismantle stigma and ensure that care experienced young people have the same opportunities as their peers to thrive in their communitiesโ.
The need to address stigma felt by care experienced people is a priority for Scotland. Since the publication of โThe Promiseโ in 2020, which is Scottish Governmentโs mandate for improving the lives of care experienced children and young people, there has been heightened focus on challenging stigma across the care sector.
Moray is committed to listening to children and young people about the stigma that they have felt and working together to tackle it, said Tracy Stephen, Chief Social Officer for Moray, who congratulated the Champions Board on its positive role supporting care experienced young people to have their voices heard.
โAs corporate parents, itโs really important that we celebrate the success stories of our young people and that we donโt shy away when they tell us we havenโt got things right,โ she said.
โThe Moray Childrenโs Services plan launched last year has the voice and experiences of children, young people and families at its heart. They told us where we were getting it right, as well as the improvements that they feel would make the biggest difference to them.
โWe have pledged to continue listening, hearing and understanding as we work to deliver our Promise that all our children and young people grow up loved, safe, respected and equal.โ
Dennis Robertson, chair of the Moray Integration Joint Board that has responsibility for children and families social work and social care services, said: “Our remarkable and resilient care experienced children and young people deserve to be celebrated every day.
โWe have strong ambitions for all Morayโs children and young people. We want looked after children to experience the same opportunities as other children, to have their health and wellbeing taken into account, to enable their success in education and to ensure they are prepared for their future.
โAddressing stigma is key to ensuring the life chances of every child and young person in our care are the best they can be. Together we can create a supportive community where everyone feels proud of their journey.โ
To learn more about the Champions Board and how to join, please email the Promise Team at promise@moray.gov.uk.
