In Bromley we strongly believe that every child and young person should be involved in the decisions that are made for them. This means making a real effort to hear your thoughts and feelings and considering them before making decisions. YOU are the experts on what it feels like to be in care, therefore we know its important that you have a say in how we improve on caring for you.
The Team
We are a dedicated team that works with you and for you! We make sure to hear your voices and make sure it impacts children’s social care. As a team we work directly with young people and social staff to:
Click on each of our names or images to see what we do!
Active Involvement Team Manager
Active Involvement Youth Worker (Children Looked After)
Active Involvement Youth Worker (Care Leavers)
Education Training Employment (ETE) Advisor
Finance Wellbeing Advisor
Housing Officer
Education Training and Employment (ETE) Advisor
Active Involvement Youth Ambassador
The Active Involvement Team are continuously trying to make sure young people in Bromley engage with us or feel they have the opportunities to improve on skills and experience.
Living in Care Council (LinCC)
Our Living in Care Council (LinCC) is for our children and young people in care aged 11-17. Its a participation group that forms the link between those in care and those in charge of their care. LinCC is a great way to meet others in care and to also contribute to making it a better place to be.
Change for Care Leavers (CfCL)
Change for Care Leavers is a forum for a group of young people who are transitioning into independent living up to the age of 25. It is a participation group that hopes to empower care leavers and pave the way for a better future for the care population. CfCL works alongside corporate parents to ensure your voices are heard.
Brightspots Survey
We deliver the Brightspots survey in partnership with Coram Voice and the surveys are evaluated by university researchers. There are two surveys, one for Children Looked After, titled Your Life, Your Care and one for Care Leavers titled, Your Life Beyond Care. Once every two years you will be asked to complete one of the surveys to give your thoughts and opinions about your care journey and the support you have received. At the end on each consultation period the anonymous findings are evaluated by university researchers and a report is written by Coram Voice. The results from the surveys help us to better understand our young people’s journey through the system in order to improve it. Once the report is back we have a really big meeting with workers and young people to explore the survey results and find ways to improve the service. You are always welcome to take part in this meeting so once you’ve received the survey look out for the meeting invitation.
Come Dine with Us
Come Dine with Us are fun sessions for young people 17+, an opportunity to cook and have a meal together.
Contact: lorna.hammer@bromley.gov.uk
Targeted Group Work
We are about to start delivering a series of group work projects aimed at supporting our young people to develop their life skills. We are currently developing a project for young people who are Not in Education, Employment or Training (NEET) which will look at preparing young people to enter the workplace and/or education and we have another project for our girls around Emotional Health and Wellbeing.
Visit our opportunities page to find out how you can get involved.
Targeted 1-2-1’s
The team provides one to one work with our young people to offer extra support in specific areas of life. The NEET Worker supports our care leavers to help prepare them to engage in education employment or training. Whilst our Income and Tenancy Officer works with our care leavers to help them take responsibility of their financial circumstances.
Recruitment
Young people in and leaving care are invited to participate in the recruitment of our social care staff, including Social Workers, Young Person Advisors and Managers. We deliver training to those who wish to be a part of the recruitment process by providing them with the right skills. Once trained and offered the opportunity to participate, they meet with the recruiting manager to acquire knowledge on the post that is being recruited to and will then take part in the interviews.
In you are interested in getting involved in any of our projects please contact Melissa Bob-Amara @ Melissa.bob-amara@bromley.gov.uk
We deliver an annual summer programme that is designed to create new memories for all participating. Activities include film and music projects, cooking, art, sports, dance and topic based issues such as race and identity etc. There are also opportunities to take part in day trips to central London as well as a targeted residential. During the programme we consult with the participants on a variety of issues as well as creating opportunity to contribute to the service.
Song recorded by our children during the summer programme
Celebration of Achievement & Success
As Corporate Parents, we want children in care and care leavers to feel safe and valued and go on to live happy and fulfilled adult lives. We facilitate opportunities for them to achieve academically at school and beyond and find ways to support them to contribute to the communities in which they live. We believe in celebrating their achievements at every opportunity. As the Active Involvement Team, we organise two annual awards ceremony to acknowledge and champion the progress that our children and care leavers are making.
Click here to find out more about the Celebration of Achievement
Click here to find out more about the Celebration of Success
Our Living in Care Council highlighted that there was little opportunity for you all to socialise with your Corporate Parents, as a result the group helped to create our annual Corporate Parenting Fun day. This is a fun family day, on the Civic Centre lawns and we have a huge BBQ with lots of fun activities aimed at all ages.