MAKING A DIFFERENCE. Including our National Young Carers Programme. Our impact in Dorset 2016/17. Impact Report: Summary. No child should feel alone

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1 MAKING A DIFFERENCE Our impact in Dorset 2016/17 Including our National Young Carers Programme No child should feel alone Impact Report: Summary December 2017

2 Welcome At The Children s Society we support children experiencing multiple disadvantage. Matthew Reed Chief Executive The Children s Society Throughout our 136-year history, our practitioners have been at the frontline of supporting young people who are facing multiple disadvantage. A young person is experiencing multiple disadvantage when they are facing issues that are affecting their physical or mental well-being in more than one area of their life. We know that when young people access our services for support with one aspect of their life, they are often having difficulties in other areas too. Our experience has enabled us to identify three key areas in which young people encounter challenges: where they face risks to their safety and well-being; where the resources they need to flourish and thrive may be compromised; and with the resilience they draw on to respond to adverse experiences in life. Our project workers attempt to take into account a range of aspects in a child s life and acknowledge that young people face a cumulative set of issues and experiences. Our practitioners are skilled at supporting young people across many areas to try to ensure sustainable positive outcomes.

3 OUR IMPACT IN DORSET 2016/17 There are approximately 77,000 children living in Dorset and over 2,600 of them are classed as Children in Need. At least 20% of children across the region live in poverty. Approximately 1, and 17 year olds present as homeless every year in this region. Our Include project, operating out of Hampshire, is a national service which aims to support the estimated 700,000 young people who care for parents, siblings or others in the UK. SERVICE LIST SERVICE LIST EMOTIONAL WELL-BEING Pacific Waves (Domestic Violence) Waves Reveal (Domestic Violence and Substance Misuse) Waves Stand By Waves Counselling Waves Transitions Project Waves Family Mediation FAMILY SUPPORT Dorset Families Matter YOUNG CARERS Our Include Service runs the following projects: Young Carers in Focus Step Change Family Inclusion Project Young Carers Initiative Training for professionals to support Young Carers My worker helped me to understand my behaviour and stop being so angry all the time. I now feel able to talk without shouting.

4 OUR DIRECT WORK We worked with 339 young people in 2016/17 We reached a further 838 young people through our awareness raising work done nationally by our Include service 80% of children and young people improved overall after working with our services in Waves (My Wheel) 96% of children and young people surveyed reported being happy or very happy with our services in Dorset SPOTLIGHT: PACIFIC WAVES Pacific Waves in Weymouth works to provide improved support to young people who have experienced or witnessed domestic violence in families, enabling them to both recognise the signs and mitigate the effects. The Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire (SDQ) is a brief emotional and behavioural screening questionnaire for children and young people. The tool can capture the perspective of children and young people, their parents and teachers. 3 in 5 young people showed improved at second assessment based on SDQ. The biggest improvements were seen in the Peer Problems Scale, followed by the Emotional Problems Scale.

5 Angelica Angelica came to see me about her nine year old son Tom. She was separated from her husband since Tom was two and had since remarried her new partner Steve had a good relationship with Tom. The communication between her and her ex was not good. Tom went to see his father every few months, however over time this had been getting harder and harder with Tom refusing to go and having angry outbursts both at home and at school. Once I started work with Tom we made a travelling book that went between homes so that Tom could talk to each side of the family about what he was doing. Dad lapsed into inconsistent contact which Tom found hard to manage. After discussion with Angelica, she decided that she would try to impose more regular contact so that Tom had a better routine and could be prepared in advance. We looked at strategies to manage anger as well as positive activities through art work and craft. Tom attended a trip to build up confidence and try out new challenges and he enjoyed the whole experience. Gradually over time Tom was saying he could try something new, he changed school and his anger outbursts were lessening. Angelica reported he was starting to sleep better. Nearing the end of what we were doing Mum sent me the following I do have to tell you though, this morning Tom sat eating his breakfast and was talking about how happy he is and what a wonderful life he has! This time last year he couldn t see the positives in anything and regularly talked about how much he hated his life. I must say, that little conversation has completely made my day!

6 OUR CAMPAIGNING AND POLICY WORK Our Include project has carried out years of consultation with young carers and their families in order to improve the way that Local Authorities identify and support them. Every year, in partnership with YMCA Fairthorne Manor, we hold a festival as part of the process of recognising, informing and consulting with young carers in order to better meet their needs and the needs of their families. Since the first Young Carers Festival in 2000 (when 600 young carers arrived at YMCA Fairthorne Manor in Hampshire) the festival has grown, with just over 1400 young carers attending in The festival provides the young people with the opportunity to have fun, relax, socialise and have their voices heard when they talk about issues that affect them. This consultation work recently led to changes in the Care Act and the Children and Families Act The changes we campaigned for strengthened the rights of young carers and their families, and required local authorities to adopt a whole system, whole council, whole-family approach, coordinating services and support around the person and their family and considering the impact of the care needs of an adult on their family, including children. The next stage of our work is looking at how well this is being implemented and how these rights are being upheld. CONTACT DETAILS Tim Cooper Business Development Lead, South of England m: e: tim.cooper@childrenssociety.org.uk Rachel Fraiz-Brown Area Manager, Waves t: e: rachel.fraiz-brown@childrenssociety.org.uk Helen Leadbitter Area Manager, Include t: e: helen.leadbitter@childrenssociety.org.uk For more information, visit childrenssociety.org.uk/impact

7 Right now in Britain there are children and young people who feel scared, unloved and unable to cope. The Children s Society works with these young people, step by step, for as long as it takes. We listen. We support. We act. There are no simple answers so we work with others to tackle complex problems. Only together can we make a difference to the lives of children now and in the future. Because no child should feel alone. If you would like to know more about The Children s Society and our work with children and young people, please visit childrenssociety.org.uk/impact or call our Supporter Care team on You can read an online version of this report or download a PDF at childrenssociety.org.uk/impact If you would like to make a donation to The Children s Society, please visit childrenssociety.org.uk/donate The Children s Society The copyright of all material appearing in this publication belongs to The Children s Society. It may not be reproduced, duplicated or copied by any means without our prior written consent. Charity Registration No BDD031e/1217