When in care, children and young people should feel heard in their placements, helping them to feel included and have a degree of control over their environment. Planning for individual needs and aspirations, and managing their expectations are important steps in providing consistent support and care. Good care planning can prevent children and young people from being triggered, help them manage relationships, prevent them from going missing and/or experiencing exploitation, and reduce the chance of them being unnecessarily criminalised.
Starting below, follow the stories of Jayden and Megan throughout the toolkit to ground the content in lived experience.
A practical exercise to help professionals understand young people’s experience of the youth justice system.
Go to Llamau’s Youth Experiential Learning SimulationGood Practice examples and practical resources from Llamau and Conwy for supporting young people in care at transitional age.
Llamau’s support service for Merthyr care leavers including what matters most to young people at transitional age.
Good practice examples of effective partnership working from Bridgend Youth Justice Service, Ysgol Bodhyfryd, Wrexham, and Ysgol Emmanuel, Rhyl.
Find out why understanding trauma to support children and young people in care is so important.
Go to Understanding child-centred and trauma informed care planning
Suitable for all professionals, this section provides information and guidance on how to engage with young people, and how to make them feel heard.
This one page guide by care experienced children and young people contains some helpful and important points for support.
For professionals working with children and young people who are at a transitional age, about to leave care.
Go to Supporting and working with young people in care placements
A range of good practice examples and activities to assist children and young people in feeling included in placements.
Go to Activities for children and young people when they are new to a placement
