Every year, the City of Wolverhampton Council helps scores of young people reaching adulthood make the move out of care to independent living, with over 300 care leavers aged between 18 and 21 currently supported by the council.
And those who are about to make, or have recently made, the move from care to independent living are taking part in a range of activities this week organised by the council and the Care Leavers Forum to celebrate their achievements and help them learn new skills.
The University of Wolverhampton hosted an experience day today (Monday) with games and taster sessions designed to inspire young people to think about their future careers and find out about some of the courses available to them, while tomorrow (Tuesday) 25 care leavers will be enjoying a tour of the state of the art Jaguar Land Rover factory at i54 South Staffordshire and taking part in a range of technology based workshops.
On Wednesday, care leavers will be able to develop their independent living skills when they visit Safeside Eastside to take part in a range of activities based on home safety, travel safety, personal finance and more.
On Thursday representatives of the Care Leavers Forum will be pitching the council's Corporate Parenting training course for staff for an award at the National Leaving Care Benchmarking Forum, while the programme concludes on Friday with a celebration event at Light House Media Centre hosted by HeadStart Wolverhampton, after which care leavers will be able to enjoy a movie.
Councillor Val Gibson, the City of Wolverhampton Council's Cabinet Member for Children and Families, said: "Supporting care leavers is a key priority for the council. Young people in care have often had a very difficult start to their lives, so it's important that we give them the help they need to make the transition into adulthood.
"Our Care Leavers are achieving well, and Care Leavers Week is a fantastic opportunity to celebrate their efforts as they begin their journey into adulthood."
The City of Wolverhampton Council has signed a Care Leavers Charter which highlights the council's commitment to "respect and honour your identity, believe in you, listen to you, inform you, support you, find you a home, and be a lifelong champion".
National Care Leavers' Week seeks to highlight the needs of care leavers, and encouraging the agencies responsible for looking after them to work in a coordinated and effective way.
- released: Monday 23 October, 2017