Annual Achievement Awards 2024
Every year we celebrate the achievements of our children looked after, care leavers and social care workers by holding an event for everyone to collect their awards.
More information on the Annual Achievements Awards
News Updates
2024
NHS SWAPS
A small group of SiCC and SLCC members have acted as consultants to the SW Care Leaver Covenant Rollout Oversight Group (SW CLC ROG) which is an NHS group committed to the Care Leavers Covenant and developing opportunities for care leavers to take employment in the NHS.
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The Autumn 2024 SiCC and SLCC Newsletter
Featuring information on:
- The Annual Achievement Awards 2024
- South Somerset Getting To Know You Day
- Share Checklist
- Burtons Orchard Film
- Leaving care houses art project
- Nuffield Family Justice Observatory Deprivation of Liberty research project
- Spark Sisterhood filming event
- GCSW app for care leavers
This edition was guest edited by Matt Dodd, Leaving Care Apprentice.
SiCC and SLCC Newsletter Autumn 2024
This is what we think: The perspectives of care-experienced young people on the Principles of Care
In March 2024 SiCC & SLCC worked with the Nuffield Family Justice Observatory (NFJO) on a project to find out the thoughts and views of children and young people on the five principles of care for children with complex needs and circumstances, including those with Deprivation of Liberty orders (DoLs).
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What does it mean to be Trauma Informed? – Film for SSCP
In March 2024 members of SiCC and SLCC joined members of Somerset Youth Parliament and the Somerset Safeguarding Children Partnership (SSCP) to produce a film about being Trauma Informed.
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Leaving Care Content Creator Apprentice
My name is Matt, and I’m a Leaving Care Content Creator Apprentice. My main role as a Content Creator is to work on the social media, I make posts for our Instagram and Facebook accounts.
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Rent Guarantor Scheme
Members of SiCC & SLCC were pleased to learn about the new scheme backed by Somerset Council to give young people in
care a chance to become more independent.
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SDAS – Somerset Drug & Alcohol Service
Members of SiCC & SLCC advised SDAS (Somerset Drug and Alcohol Service) from a service user perspective on the processes they use to support referrals to the service.
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Congratulations Kieran
Congratulations to Kieran Warren, care leaver and member of SiCC & SLCC who was successful in his bid to become a member of the Department for Education children’s social care advisory board.
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The Winter 2024 SiCC and SLCC Newsletter
Featuring information on:
- Homes and Horizons Award
- SiCC and SLCC Quality Checkers
- Leaving Care Content Creator Apprentice – Matt Dodd
- Naming the new 16+ Service
- SDAS – Somerset Drugs and Alcohol Service
- Congratulations Kieran
- Meet Jo Manning
- Rent Guarantor Scheme
SiCC and SLCC Newsletter Winter 2024
2023
Somerset Young People in care win award for their work on homes for children
A group of young people in care and care leavers have won an award from a leading advocacy group for their work on homes for children.
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The Autumn 2023 SiCC and SLCC Newsletter
Featuring information on:
- Annual Achievements Awards
- Getting to know you days
- 16+ accommodation service
- Homes and Horizons MJ Awards
- Step up to social work
- Quality checkers
- Children’s Social Care interviews
- SiCC and SLCC Creatives Roadshow
SiCC and SLCC Newsletter Autumn 2023
The Spring 2023 SiCC and SLCC Newsletter
Featuring information on:
- Homes and Horizons – Fostering services and quality checkers
- The Mind of My Own consultation
- Getting to know you days
- Independence skills
- Work that SiCC and SLCC have done with Plymouth University
- The Corporate Parenting Board
- Updates on work created by the SiCC and SLCC Creatives and Film crews
- The Vaping and E-Cigarettes project
SiCC and SLCC Newsletter Spring 2023
2022
The Winter 2022 SiCC and SLCC Newsletter
Featuring information on:
- The brand new ‘Child Protection Conference’ animation created by the SiCC and SLCC Film Crew
- How SiCC and SLCC have helped design and review services
- Updates on what SiCC and SLCC have been working on
- Work created by the SiCC and SLCC Creatives
- Opportunities for SiCC and SLCC to participate
SiCC and SLCC Newsletter Winter 2022
The Summer 2022 SiCC and SLCC Newsletter
Featuring information on:
- The brand new ‘Your Journey: Coming in to Care’ animation created by members of SiCC and SLCC
- Developing the website, newsletter, filming and animation
- The Annual Achievement Awards
- Work created by the SiCC and SLCC Creatives
- SiCC and SLCC representation in London with the Director of Children Services
SiCC and SLCC Newsletter Summer 2022
The Spring 2022 SiCC and SLCC Newsletter
Featuring information on:
- Opportunities
- Achievements
- Ways that you can get involved and make a difference
SiCC and SLCC Newsletter Feb 2022
Somerset County Council Homes for Children Tender
A recognised need for the way placements for children in care in Somerset are commissioned and delivered led to an opportunity to co-design and re-think ways to work together.
SiCC and SLCC were approached by the Children’s Commissioners to ensure young people were involved in the process of finding the trusted provider. Over a period of two months, six members of SiCC and SLCC were met by potential providers bidding for the opportunity and devised questions to be part of the formal scoring interview process, they visited children’s homes run by providers and inspected them through interviewing staff and reports. After the visits which took them all over the country they attended a reflective session to confirm their findings and presented this back to the commissioning team.
2021
Making a complaint against Children’s Social Care
A young woman had made a complaint about decisions made around her care and the way her complaint was managed.
The Complaints group in addition to the Customer Experiences team worked together to update the process for making complaints, then produced a script making sure that all language was young person friendly. This was then reviewed by members of SiCC and SLCC, who considered whether the new process made sense and was suitable for them. They were then involved at every step of the production of the animation.
Once finished the young woman who made the complaint was pleased that she had been listened to, that it had led to a change in the service and was happy with the changes to the process. The members of SiCC and SLCC that helped make the animation were rightfully proud that they had been able to help other young people.
What makes a good social worker?
In February 2021 half term, the Leaving Care apprentices and the In-Care Councils (SiCC & SLCC) were invited to deliver a training session via Teams to 16 first-year social work students at Yeovil College.
We showed the students a film incorporating the voices of young people from the Care Councils, entitled ‘What Makes a Good Social Worker?’.
The young people used their lived experiences of care to tell the students what worked and what wasn’t helpful. The main learning points were around consistency, reliability and listening to young people.