Listening to the Children We Care For

In 2017, with the national charity Coram Voice, we carried out a survey to gain an understanding of the lives of Children We Care For.  Post-Covid, it is time to do this survey again.  We need to understand how well Oxfordshire County Council and our partners are doing for children in our care and where improvements can be made.  With your support, we want to hear from as many Children We Care For as possible. 

Keyworkers and the people who children live with cannot complete the survey with our children and young people (but they can encourage them to complete it). This is to ensure that our children and young people feel able to speak freely and say what they want about the care and support they receive. Therefore, we need trusted adults to help children and young people complete their survey. This can include IROs, supervising social workers, designated teachers, virtual school workers, EET workers, Targeted Youth Support Workers, advocates or any professional who knows the child and who understands our safeguarding responsibilities and data protection requirements. 

Over the last week we have been identifying the trusted adults for all of the 683 children and young people who met the criteria for the survey and they are currently being sent all the appropriate links and information for supporting the children and young people that they have been identified with in order to complete the survey with them.

The survey will be live from the 18 March 2024 for 6 weeks. 

To help encourage the children and young people to complete the survey they will be placed into a prize draw for gift vouchers. And, all staff who are supporting young people to complete surveys, will also be entered into a staff prize draw!

Further information will follow, but we just wanted to give you the heads up that the survey is taking place - and that you may be asked to encourage children and young people to complete their survey or by being a trusted adult.

What happens to the information?  Later in the year, Coram Voice will provide an independent report.  This will provide Oxfordshire County Council with a baseline so we can work towards improvements and changes to ensure our children are achieving and fulfilling their potential. If you have any questions, please contact Roz.Mascarenhas@oxfordshire.gov.uk or James.collins@oxfordshire.gov.uk

Thank you for your support.