Care Experienced Advisory Group
FosterWiki Care Experienced Advisory Group
Welcome to the FosterWiki Care Experienced Advisory Group
The care experienced, both past and present, is at the heart of FosterWiki. As foster carers it is their outcomes and experiences that shape all we do, and all we campaign for.
Foster care exists to enrich the lives of those in care, our FosterWiki Advisory Group and their stories tell us we are not there yet, but as an integral part of the FosterWiki team, this group have the power to inspire, transform and frame all we do, improving lives and outcomes of children in care.
King
The reason that we are the way we are, is mostly if not all dependent on how we are nurtured as children. I am someone who has bared witness to this in myself and others throughout life in care and as a care leaver.
After being introduced to Niki and being welcomed on board this campaign, I feel a sense of purpose that aligns with overcoming past trauma that is perpetuated through broken attachments.
My goals are set in making a difference using a range of art forms. As a musician and writer, I take pride in producing thought provoking material through song and narrative. Combining this pursuit with a message of healing is what I believe is key to reforming the integrity of the care system.
I am therefore passionate about this movement as I feel a call of duty to assist others in finding themselves. The impact of losing significant connections equates to losing a sense of identity. This campaign invites authorities to appropriately address this as detrimental and inherently change lives.
Kimberley
My name is Kimberley, I was in care my whole life and finally left at 26.
The thing that drew me to Noah’s campaign was the need for change so no child has to bounced around to 17 homes like I was.
The care system caused me a lot of trauma that I should never have suffered, the stigma, the stereotypes and it has stayed my whole life.
It was lovely to meet all the amazing people currently part of this campaign who want the same thing. I graduated university with a psychology degree and I am now a senior volunteer support worker, I work with children and their families. I am an advocate for looked after children and a lived experience speaker.
We also fight for foster carers to be more protected in the work they do and I believe that they should have more say in what happens to the young people in there care and especially as children transition to new homes.
Seeing the tireless work that FosterWiki do inspires me so much. I feel like I finally found my tribe, I found a reason to why I needed to go through what I did, my reason was to advocate for change, for the current, past and future young people that will be in the care system and the foster carers as well.
I’m passionate about what is right, this is my purpose, putting my life experiences into use through this campaign I feel like I am where I am supposed to be. Young children matter, foster carers matter and often times they are treated like nothing. We all have the same goal within Noah’s campaign and for that my heart and soul is into it, I am proud to be part of Noah’s campaign.
This is our tribe.
Daniella
What drew me to Noah’s Campaign was my experience of being in the care system and have seen both good and bad, I wanted to advocate for those children like me who did not have a heard voice because they were ‘just a looked after child’ With the recent death of my friend who was in fact adopted from care, I want to do this for him and all of the other children who did not get the chance to live, and for all those children from care who do not get he chance to reach their fullest potential due to the adversities life has thrown at them.
I work supporting young people through other likeminded organisations and I hope to start my own charity one day. We are fighting to get Noah’s Campaign principles of protecting the important relationships embedded into law. Our goal is that no child leaves care with no-one like I did. It really does take a village to raise a child and I want to be in that village that the younger me so needed.
Saffron
Hello, I’m Saffron, a care-experienced individual in my late 20s. My encounters have influenced how I view social care. I am the founder and director of Children of a Revolution, a non-profit organisation that promotes healing through creativity for those in marginalised groups, especially in the social care sector. Recently, I ventured into self-employment with Hear It First Hand, offering training in children and family settings to enhance services using real-life experiences to shape courses. Additionally, I have dedicated three years to working as a senior children’s residential support worker in residential homes.
My involvement in Noah’s campaign is fuelled by my quest for justice and commitment to addressing issues within the social care system to improve the lives of children and families. Connecting with Niki and FosterWiki on Linked In led to a friendship based on trust, shared interests, and sharing coping strategies. After learning about Niki’s fostering journey and her eventual resignation due to the challenges foster carers so often face in maintaining relationships with many of the children they have cared for sometimes for years, the lack of commitment to meaningful life story work and the difficulties faced trying to protect children from the very system that is supposed to protect them, her experiences touched me deeply.
I recognised not just a story, but a deep-felt emotion that I resonated with as a care leaver, I saw a compassionate woman who aimed to prevent poor practice from recurring, driven by a profound passion for change through effective communication honesty, and finding solutions. I bring to this role my understanding through my own experiences in and out of ‘care’ and all of my knowledge to support this campaign.
Together we will positively impact the lives of children in care and out of care.
