The Children’s Commissioner for England, Anne Longfield, is investigating the different types of accommodation children in care are placed in, other than foster or residential care. This includes hostels, foyers, B&Bs and caravan parks. A report containing findings and recommendations for change will be published by her office in early 2020.
Personal experiences can be a powerful way to effect change. We want to shine a visual light on the reality of living in this type of accommodation, through personal blogs, videos, and photographs, which we’ll publish (anonymously) on IMO and the Children’s Commissioner’s website alongside the report. If you were placed in a hostel, foyer, B&B or caravan park while you were in care, or if you’re currently placed in one now, get in touch with us to let us know what it was like. We want to gather as many experiences as possible so we can highlight the reality of life in these types of accommodation and increase our impact to create real change in the system.
We’ll accept blogs (long or short), videos and/or photographs that give us and others an insight into your experience of being in care and living in a hostel, foyer, B&B or caravan park.
We’re looking for content that shows us what your living situation was like, for example what your bedroom looked like, what facilities you had, who you lived with, what support you received, and content that lets us know how it made you feel.
We’ll keep all personal details confidential, and we’ll anonymise your content before we share it online. We may need to edit your content to protect your identity, for example removing names and addresses from blogs, or blurring identifying information in photographs. We’ll let you know if we need to do this.
To get involved, complete this form and send it, along with your blogs, videos and/or photographs to [email protected].
If you have any questions, please email [email protected].
