Hello, thanks for reading our Advocacy Wrap Up for March 2022. The policy and advocacy team have been hard at work with young people to understand the issues that are impacting their lives and workshopping ideas to try and change them for the better. We’ve got updates on:
- overseas organisations we work with on global issues in the out of home care secto
- the latest on our submissions to government inquiries
- an update on the online Voices in Action Conference that CREATE runs and is coming up in April (26th to the 29th)
- an update on the consultations we are working on with young people in different states and territories across the country
- how we are working on our priority advocacy areas with CREATE’s Youth Action Groups and the National Influencing Committee
Please feel free to reach out to the team at CREATE via create@create.org.au if you’ve got any questions about anything we are working on with young people with a care experience in Australia or if you’ve got anything to add or contribute to any of these pieces of work. Looking forward to hearing from you.
Overseas relationships
VOYCE – Whakarongo Mai is a New Zealand based organisation that advocates for young people with a care experience. They exist to amplify the voices of children with a care experience to ensure they are heard, to positively influence their individual and collective care across the system. VOYCE was co-designed by children with a care experience for children with a care experience.
CREATE has a longstanding relationship with VOYCE ever since they were established and we are so excited to have them presenting at the Voices in Action Conference in April – make sure you register to attend to ensure you hear about what young people are advocating for in Aotearoa (New Zealand).
We have also recently worked with Who Cares? Scotland on collaborating on a presentation to a global conference and are excited to work with them more on global issues in the future.
Submissions
We have completed submissions to the Youth Justice Reform Discussion Paper in Tasmania called “Reforming Tasmania’s Youth Justice System: A pathway for improving outcomes across the youth justice support continuum”. In short, CREATE supports a more therapeutic model of youth justice and we are excited about the opportunities for young people to get more support from their communities when things go wrong. To find out more about the reform agenda – head to this website to view, or read our submission here.
ViA Conference
We are really excited about our Voices in Action conference coming up in April. The theme of our conference this year is Resilient, Resourceful, and Remarkable. Head here to register.
We’ve got lots of interesting speakers and things to talk about, do, and connect over. Think sessions where we can discuss what needs to change in the out of home care system, what’s working really well, we’ll have a space to ask questions, and sessions where you can contribute your voice and artistic expression. We are all really keen to see you there!
Consultations
We are working with child safety departments in the ACT on a housing consultation to hear from kids with a care experience on what’s its like to look for housing once you move out of their primary placement. We and other organisations working in the out of home care sector know that the search for adequate housing can be one of the most challenging parts of the transition from care and hopefully through this consultation we can help make that process easier for young people in the ACT.
We are consulting with kids in South Australia around education to try and better understand their experiences with educational institutions. This will really help us ensure that young people have the support they need to thrive in whichever educational stream they are keen to work towards.
We are lastly consulting with young people in the Northern Territory about the support they receive from their case workers. This consultation will really help us be able to target discussions with the NT Government about ensuring the right level of support for young people in care in the territory.
YAG Participation
The policy and advocacy team have started heading out to Youth Advisory Groups (these are young people that work with CREATE to overcome the challenges that young people face by contributing to research, advocacy campaigns, and providing feedback on their experiences in care) to discuss the CREATE Strategy over the next 5 years that we’ve recently been consulting with young people all over the country about.
If you are a part of a YAG – keep your eyes peeled for a member of the policy and advocacy team in your next meeting!
In the media
We are continuing to share our Post-Care report that was completed last year, so make sure you take the chance to share the report with your people in your community. The report provides a comprehensive account of the issues that impact on the lived reality of children and young people with a care experience in Australia.
And keep your eyes peeled on our socials to stay up to date with stories of young people with a care experience.
