➡️ Read more about Drive Forward at the Labour Party Conference 2024

I think it’s fantastic to imagine a world where politicians are thinking about their role and their backgrounds during reforms. We will get much more done when we employ people with a sense of understanding of the systems and issues that are embedded within policymaking. I must commend Janet Daby MP, Minister for Children and Families for her proactive approach to listen and share her understanding of the care system with highly experienced and skilled panel members. I believe this needs to be an ongoing theme for those who choose to represent us, as it offers more of a realistic approach when creating policy. There’s a common theme across the lack of adequate support available for care-experienced young people, although we have noticed some positive changes. I’d like to believe that the basic care, emotional warmth, education, and guidance, as well as adequate funding in terms of key resources, exist at the centre of change. Some learning is clearly needed surrounding the stability of young people during the transition out of the care system, sustaining employment, and further learning issues relative to mental healthcare for care leavers; this area of work is still outstanding from conversations at senior leadership level.

I enjoyed the fact that I was given the opportunity to submit questions and have them addressed directly by the ministers. It’s important to me to speak up for many of my peers who simply feel forgotten about once they’re deemed as adults (18-25 year olds). And those aged out of the system are further unable to unstick themselves from the lack of knowledge, support, and resources. We speak about university students having to stay at home with their parents at the highest level currently because of the current financial crisis, yet no one thinks about those without parents to fall back on like ‘the care-experienced people’.

I look forward to planning meetings from the window of opportunities gained from the multiple meetings I attended at this year’s Annual Labour Conference, including the private huddle with the Children’s Commissioner’s Office. I am hoping to support in creating tangible actions, and I’m sure DFF’s Policy Forum manifesto is key to ending the negative outcomes or minimizing the risks to the issues that care-experienced people particularly face in poor education prospects, overcriminalization, inadequate housing, and much more.