Barnardo’s Action with Young Carers retains Investing in Children Membership Award
Barnardo’s Action with Young Carers awarded Investing in Children Membership Award™ for another year.
Investing in Children (IiC) is a UK initiative that promotes the human rights of children and young people. Over the last 22 years, IiC has developed a range of different ways in which children and young people are supported to say what they want to say, and help to improve services used by them, by discussing their ideas with the adults who run the services.
One of the ways they do this is through the IiC Membership Award™ Scheme.
The Investing in Children Membership Award™ Scheme recognises and celebrates examples of imaginative and inclusive practice with children and young people. Organisations applying for the award have to demonstrate dialogue with young people which leads to change. However, children and young people have to provide evidence for the organisation and endorse the membership report because it is a children’s and young people’s award.
There are currently over 500 members across the UK and Ireland.
A member of the Liverpool CAMHS Partnership, Barnardo’s Action with Young Carers, Liverpool is a voluntary organisation, commissioned through Liverpool city council and jointly funded with the Clinical Commissioning Group with additional funding from Barnardo’s and Mersey Care NHS Trust. It supports young carers and young adult carers up to and including the age of 25 years who are caring for an adult. It is a citywide service that ensures young carers and young adult carers in Liverpool are identified and can receive a carer’s assessment under the statutory duty of the Council.
Keeping the Family in Mind (KFIM) is a development project set up by Barnardo’s AWYC Liverpool to ensure the views and experiences of young carers, children, young people and families impacted by parental mental health are listened to by service providers, commissioners and decision makers in Liverpool. Under the new commissioned service (July 2015) KFIM development work enhances and supports the wider work of the direct and indirect service across parental disability.
Speaking about her assessment and evaluation of the service, Eleanor Seed Project Manager Investing in Children CIC said: “Once again I am completely blown away by the lengths the staff team and service go to for ensuring that both young carers and young adult carers have in ensuring their voices are heard and changes are made as a result.
“My report clearly identifies the depth of the work they do and the true active engagement. After visiting the project on a yearly basis for several years now, I am once again overwhelmed by the impact the project has on not only the organisation itself but partner organisations, key decision makers and most importantly the young people and their families themselves. Every young person I have met that is involved in the service has given nothing but praise about the service and the impact it has had on their lives.
“When I asked the young people if they felt Barnardo’s should receive Investing in Children Membership Award™ for another year based on involving children and young people in Dialogue that leads to Change, they all agreed and said”:
“They offer a mixture of ways to give your views.”
“They take our voice very seriously and value what we say!”
“They should definitely get the award!”