Last week the Commissioner for Children and Young People Dr Kylie Heneker travelled to Melbourne to meet with organisations, leaders and young people helping shape more responsive systems and services for children and young people.
The visit included time at Melbourne City Mission with leadership and the team from Frontyard Youth Services, to explore the benefits of co-locating health, financial and other services with youth supported housing. The Amplify program has also embedded domestic family violence support for young people as victim/survivors in their own right, which includes connecting them with education and training, financial support and housing.
The Commissioner also met with CREATE Foundation’s Victorian and SA teams, leaders from the Department for Families, Fairness and Housing and youth adviser Hayley to discuss the Youth Expert Advisory Group (YEAG), which ensures the expertise of young people with lived experience of out of home care informs the service design, implementation and evaluation of programs supporting the transition of young people from care to independence.
The Commissioner is exploring how insights from across jurisdictions can help inform work underway in South Australia to design tailored service interventions and lived experience networks for and with children and young people.
#ccypsa #createfoundation #frontyardyouthservices #YouthHomelessness #auspol
Young People with lived care experience are helping shape reform, and their voices are driving real change in Child Protection #livedcareexperienced #youthvoice #CareLeavers #createfoundation
I’ll tell you what WE want, what WE really really want! 🎶
Young people in the NT to always have a safe place to sleep, not on a couch but in a bed! Because a couch shouldn’t be a bed for any young person.
Yesterday we raised awareness for Youth Homelessness Day 💛
Big thank you to @anglicarent & @cityofdarwin for organising and creating this space every year for such important awareness 🏠❤️
Because every young person deserves more than survival, they deserve a place to call home. 🏡✨ @createfnd@childrenscommissionernt
We had the privilege of meeting with Mirri Mirri to do Cultural Awareness Training. From the moment we arrived it felt welcoming and calming, with everyone there being super kind (and funny😉). We learnt a lot on First Nations people, systems and history in the two hours training and we couldve kept going. Thank you Paul, Janine, Dean and Jarrod! Hope to see ya’ll again ☺️🫡🌿☀️
WHAT. A. DAY. 💥
Young people leading powerful conversations on Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Self-Determination and transitioning to independence, sharing real, solution-focused ideas for change, especially around safe and secure housing.
This is what it looks like when young people are truly heard.
Thank you to DCF senior leaders for creating space, and to the Office of the Children’s Commissioner and the Children’s Commissioner for championing and supporting young people’s voices.
And to our Young Consultants, your voices and leadership are driving change ✊🏽💜
The future is stronger when young people lead it ✊🏽💜 @createfnd
A fantastic conversation on Tuesday this week with experts across the country about how oversight bodies view safeguarding of children in our care and protection systems.
We discussed the vital importance of respectfully upholding children's voices and perspectives with the upmost care, respect and with action.
Big thanks to The Hatchery for including our Guardian Shona Reid alongside an amazing panel: Imogen Edeson, Dr. Kate Alexander, Rachel Ward, and Megan Mitchell. 🙌
A beautiful morning celebrating International Women’s Day 💜
We were so proud to celebrate alongside @chelawellness , BAMALANGMOB Productions @bamalangmp and the incredible young women apart of our CREATE Crew. The CREATE office was filled with confidence, music, make-up, hair styling and dresses! Young people had the chance to get glammed up, choose an outfit, and step in front of the camera celebrating themselves, their confidence and who they are.
It was such a special space to see young people relaxing, supporting each other and just enjoying the moment together 🥰 This is only a little sneak peek… stay tuned for the professional photos! 📸✨
A big thank you to Department of People, Sport and Culture, Office of Gender Equity and Diversity for making this event possible through the International Women’s Day Grant 💜
#InternationalWomensDay #CREATEFoundation #IWD
"Growing up I've been through so much, but it hasn't really stopped me. It's kind of made me more powerful, " says Jess, 24.
Jess is supermum breaking barriers. As a child, she was in many different foster care placements that gave her no sense of stability or safety.
At school, she said, "people were going around saying that your family don't care about you and that's why you're in care.
Jess said as she got older, she fully appreciated the strength and resilience it took for her to overcome these challenges.
"I wouldn't be where I am today if it wasn't for what I experienced," she said.
To other young people in care who might be facing similar struggles, Jess's message is, "it won't last forever. It's difficult now, but as you get older you'll get more freedom and you can shape who you are."
Jess is an amazing mum of two who regularly volunteers with Puddle Jumpers Incorporated, helping other kids.
"I want to teach my kids to be who they are and show them what love is and that's something that I didn't really taught much being in care, so I guess it's trying to teach my kids what I wasn't taught"
Thanks for sharing your story Jess! #WorldCareday #BreakingBarriers #SnapThatStigma
