Conference to help kids who call council mum and dad

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Renfrewshire Council is hosting a conference on Monday 10 November to raise awareness about being a good corporate parent. The aim is to help 'Looked After children' to do better at school, get into training and further education, find a job and live happier, healthier lives.

Over the past two years the number of children who are Looked After by Renfrewshire Council has risen by 23%. Some 669 youngsters are now either in residential accommodation, living with their parents or relatives under Council supervision or placed with foster carers.

The growth in the number of Looked After children reflects an increase in parental alcohol and drug abuse, physical neglect and the negative impact this has on children. Traditionally children who are Looked After haven't done as well as their contemporaries although in Renfrewshire children who are in residential accommodation fare better than those still with their parents.

Top civil servant, Anna Fowlie, Head of Corporate Parenting in the Scottish Government's Care & Justice Division will be at the conference to talk about new guidance on corporate parenting entitled, "These are our Bairns."

Councillor Derek Mackay, leader of Renfrewshire Council, said, "Like any good parent, we want our children do well at school and enjoy their time there. We want them to be healthy and feel secure and confident. We want them to go on to college or university, to find good jobs, to settle down and have happy lives.

"Being a parent, let alone a corporate parent isn't an easy job. In Renfrewshire many of the children and young people who we look after are in our care because their own parents neglect them because of drink or drug problems. We have to overcome the damage done by these early problems and provide the support that any child should be able to expect from their family."

Renfrewshire's child protection services have already received top marks from HMIe (Her Majesty's Inspectorate of Education). The conference will hear about two further award winning projects that have been put in place to improve the lives of children who the council looks after.

The Mentoring Support project (MSupport) won a Gold Award for Advancing Community and Citizen Wellbeing from CoSLA, the Convention of Scottish Local Authorities.

Scottish Government figures show young people who have been Looked After can play truant and find it difficult to stick with training programmes and jobs. These problems can contribute to them ending up living in poverty outside mainstream society.

MSupport matches youngsters with a mentor who provides encouragement, guidance and support. The one-to-one support helps to create a sense of belonging for young people, who can often feel left out or just a face in the crowd.

The mentor and the young person work out an action plan based on an educational, employment or training target. The plan also looks at any issues in the young person’s life which might be a barrier to reaching the target.

In June, Johnstone High School won the CBI's Schools for All award at the Scottish Education Awards. Looked After children were the focus of the awards.

Johnstone High School received its accolade for its unique approach to making sure that Looked After children get the support they need. All Looked After children are allocated a named person within their school. At Johnstone High School that person is a principal teacher of guidance.

Jeanette Potter, principal teacher of guidance at Johnstone High School, said, "Our arrangement has the advantage of one member of staff not only having an overview of the agenda for Looked After children but also of knowing each child personally as part of her Guidance group. The youngsters who live in children's units are regarded as a family unit. This helps build very close links with partner agencies.

"Within the school, there is an emphasis on achievement as well as attainment. School staff have the same high expectations of Looked After children as they have of any other pupils. Equally important is the philosophy that Looked After children are encouraged to have high expectations of themselves.

"Young people are actively encouraged to take part in extra curricular activities such as sport and the Duke of Edinburgh Awards scheme as well as taking part in supported study sessions. This, together with individual support from the LAC teacher and the guidance teacher ensures that Looked After children not only leave school with good academic qualifications but also as confident individuals who can make a positive contribution to society."

Press release: Tuesday 11 November 2008