{"id":1688,"date":"2018-08-24T12:29:43","date_gmt":"2018-08-24T11:29:43","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.childrenscommissioner.gov.uk\/imo\/?p=1688"},"modified":"2023-02-14T12:49:49","modified_gmt":"2023-02-14T12:49:49","slug":"welcome-to-imo-a-message-from-others","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.childrenscommissioner.gov.uk\/imo\/career-experiences\/welcome-to-imo-a-message-from-others\/","title":{"rendered":"Welcome to IMO &#8211; a message from others"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<div class=\"wp-block-group is-layout-constrained wp-block-group-is-layout-constrained\">\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Coming into care may feel scary, but we want you to know that you\u2019re not alone and there are people, including us, who you can talk to. We are all either in care or we&#8217;ve been in care, and we think it\u2019s important to tell you that there are just some things in life that you can\u2019t control.<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>It\u2019s OK to ask questions, especially if you don\u2019t understand what is happening, and please remember that no question is a silly question. There are lots of different people and workers who will be around to help you and who want the best for you. You may meet lots of new adults during this time &#8211; remember that they are all there to support you, and you can talk to them about any of your worries and ask them any questions you may have.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>There are lots of others who are the same age as you in care and you can meet them through <a href=\"https:\/\/www.childrenscommissioner.gov.uk\/imo\/find-your-local-children-in-care-council\/\">your local Children in Care Council<\/a>. This is somewhere you can go to have fun, make friends and have your say on your experiences.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">IMO &#8211; write, speak, share<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>We know how important it is to be able to talk to others in a similar situation and who understand how you might feel. That&#8217;s why IMO is filled with <a href=\"https:\/\/www.childrenscommissioner.gov.uk\/imo\/your-stories\/\">experiences, stories<\/a> and <a href=\"https:\/\/www.childrenscommissioner.gov.uk\/imo\/life-hacks\/\">advice from others in care<\/a>. We&#8217;ve also got <a href=\"https:\/\/www.childrenscommissioner.gov.uk\/imo\/jobs\/\">info on finding work<\/a>, and a section dedicated to giving away <a href=\"https:\/\/www.childrenscommissioner.gov.uk\/imo\/free-stuff\/\">lots of great free stuff<\/a>. All the content on IMO has been created by others in care. If you&#8217;d like to share something for publication on IMO &#8211; an article, blog, vlog, some poetry or perhaps some photography &#8211; then <a href=\"https:\/\/www.childrenscommissioner.gov.uk\/imo\/blog-vlog-for-us\/\">please get in touch here<\/a> or at <a href=\"mailto:hello@imohub.org.uk\">hello@imohub.org.uk.&nbsp;&nbsp;<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><em>This message was originally written by Essex Children in Care Council to welcome new members to the council. We thought it was so good that you should see it &#8211; it strikes a chord with anyone in care, and not just in Essex.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>About the author<br>\nThis welcome message was written by members of Essex Children in Care Council.<br>\n<a href=\"https:\/\/www.childrenscommissioner.gov.uk\/imo\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/08\/Essex-CiCC-Message.pdf\">View the original welcome message here.<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Coming into care may feel scary, but we want you to know that you\u2019re not alone and there are people, including us, who you can talk to. We are all either in care or we&#8217;ve been in care, and we think it\u2019s important to tell you that there are just some things in life that [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":12,"featured_media":1690,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[10,25],"tags":[11,21,19],"class_list":["post-1688","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-career-experiences","category-your-stories","tag-advice","tag-being-in-care","tag-foster-care"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"<title>Welcome to IMO - a message from others - IMO<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.childrenscommissioner.gov.uk\/imo\/career-experiences\/welcome-to-imo-a-message-from-others\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_GB\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Welcome to IMO - a message from others - IMO\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Coming into care may feel scary, but we want you to know that you\u2019re not alone and there are people, including us, who you can talk to. We are all either in care or we&#8217;ve been in care, and we think it\u2019s important to tell you that there are just some things in life that [&hellip;]\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.childrenscommissioner.gov.uk\/imo\/career-experiences\/welcome-to-imo-a-message-from-others\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"In My Opinion\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2018-08-24T11:29:43+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2023-02-14T12:49:49+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/assets.childrenscommissioner.gov.uk\/wpuploads\/sites\/3\/2018\/08\/ESSEX-CiCC.png\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"727\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"408\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/png\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Estimated reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"2 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.childrenscommissioner.gov.uk\/imo\/career-experiences\/welcome-to-imo-a-message-from-others\/#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.childrenscommissioner.gov.uk\/imo\/career-experiences\/welcome-to-imo-a-message-from-others\/\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"\",\"@id\":\"\"},\"headline\":\"Welcome to IMO &#8211; a message from others\",\"datePublished\":\"2018-08-24T11:29:43+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2023-02-14T12:49:49+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.childrenscommissioner.gov.uk\/imo\/career-experiences\/welcome-to-imo-a-message-from-others\/\"},\"wordCount\":378,\"commentCount\":0,\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.childrenscommissioner.gov.uk\/imo\/career-experiences\/welcome-to-imo-a-message-from-others\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/assets.childrenscommissioner.gov.uk\/wpuploads\/sites\/3\/2018\/08\/ESSEX-CiCC.png\",\"keywords\":[\"advice\",\"being in care\",\"foster care\"],\"articleSection\":[\"Career experienced people\",\"Your stories\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-GB\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"CommentAction\",\"name\":\"Comment\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/www.childrenscommissioner.gov.uk\/imo\/career-experiences\/welcome-to-imo-a-message-from-others\/#respond\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.childrenscommissioner.gov.uk\/imo\/career-experiences\/welcome-to-imo-a-message-from-others\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.childrenscommissioner.gov.uk\/imo\/career-experiences\/welcome-to-imo-a-message-from-others\/\",\"name\":\"Welcome to IMO - a message from others - IMO\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.childrenscommissioner.gov.uk\/imo\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.childrenscommissioner.gov.uk\/imo\/career-experiences\/welcome-to-imo-a-message-from-others\/#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.childrenscommissioner.gov.uk\/imo\/career-experiences\/welcome-to-imo-a-message-from-others\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/assets.childrenscommissioner.gov.uk\/wpuploads\/sites\/3\/2018\/08\/ESSEX-CiCC.png\",\"datePublished\":\"2018-08-24T11:29:43+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2023-02-14T12:49:49+00:00\",\"author\":{\"@id\":\"\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-GB\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/www.childrenscommissioner.gov.uk\/imo\/career-experiences\/welcome-to-imo-a-message-from-others\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-GB\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.childrenscommissioner.gov.uk\/imo\/career-experiences\/welcome-to-imo-a-message-from-others\/#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/assets.childrenscommissioner.gov.uk\/wpuploads\/sites\/3\/2018\/08\/ESSEX-CiCC.png\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/assets.childrenscommissioner.gov.uk\/wpuploads\/sites\/3\/2018\/08\/ESSEX-CiCC.png\",\"width\":727,\"height\":408},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.childrenscommissioner.gov.uk\/imo\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.childrenscommissioner.gov.uk\/imo\/\",\"name\":\"IMO\",\"description\":\"IMO is a voice for teenagers in care and for care leavers. Somewhere you can share stories, experiences and achievements, get and give advice, and find loads of great free stuff!\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\/\/www.childrenscommissioner.gov.uk\/imo\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-GB\"}]}<\/script>","yoast_head_json":{"title":"Welcome to IMO - a message from others - IMO","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/www.childrenscommissioner.gov.uk\/imo\/career-experiences\/welcome-to-imo-a-message-from-others\/","og_locale":"en_GB","og_type":"article","og_title":"Welcome to IMO - a message from others - IMO","og_description":"Coming into care may feel scary, but we want you to know that you\u2019re not alone and there are people, including us, who you can talk to. We are all either in care or we&#8217;ve been in care, and we think it\u2019s important to tell you that there are just some things in life that [&hellip;]","og_url":"https:\/\/www.childrenscommissioner.gov.uk\/imo\/career-experiences\/welcome-to-imo-a-message-from-others\/","og_site_name":"In My Opinion","article_published_time":"2018-08-24T11:29:43+00:00","article_modified_time":"2023-02-14T12:49:49+00:00","og_image":[{"width":727,"height":408,"url":"https:\/\/assets.childrenscommissioner.gov.uk\/wpuploads\/sites\/3\/2018\/08\/ESSEX-CiCC.png","type":"image\/png"}],"twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"","Estimated reading time":"2 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Article","@id":"https:\/\/www.childrenscommissioner.gov.uk\/imo\/career-experiences\/welcome-to-imo-a-message-from-others\/#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.childrenscommissioner.gov.uk\/imo\/career-experiences\/welcome-to-imo-a-message-from-others\/"},"author":{"name":"","@id":""},"headline":"Welcome to IMO &#8211; a message from others","datePublished":"2018-08-24T11:29:43+00:00","dateModified":"2023-02-14T12:49:49+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.childrenscommissioner.gov.uk\/imo\/career-experiences\/welcome-to-imo-a-message-from-others\/"},"wordCount":378,"commentCount":0,"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.childrenscommissioner.gov.uk\/imo\/career-experiences\/welcome-to-imo-a-message-from-others\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/assets.childrenscommissioner.gov.uk\/wpuploads\/sites\/3\/2018\/08\/ESSEX-CiCC.png","keywords":["advice","being in care","foster care"],"articleSection":["Career experienced people","Your stories"],"inLanguage":"en-GB","potentialAction":[{"@type":"CommentAction","name":"Comment","target":["https:\/\/www.childrenscommissioner.gov.uk\/imo\/career-experiences\/welcome-to-imo-a-message-from-others\/#respond"]}]},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/www.childrenscommissioner.gov.uk\/imo\/career-experiences\/welcome-to-imo-a-message-from-others\/","url":"https:\/\/www.childrenscommissioner.gov.uk\/imo\/career-experiences\/welcome-to-imo-a-message-from-others\/","name":"Welcome to IMO - a message from others - IMO","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.childrenscommissioner.gov.uk\/imo\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.childrenscommissioner.gov.uk\/imo\/career-experiences\/welcome-to-imo-a-message-from-others\/#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.childrenscommissioner.gov.uk\/imo\/career-experiences\/welcome-to-imo-a-message-from-others\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/assets.childrenscommissioner.gov.uk\/wpuploads\/sites\/3\/2018\/08\/ESSEX-CiCC.png","datePublished":"2018-08-24T11:29:43+00:00","dateModified":"2023-02-14T12:49:49+00:00","author":{"@id":""},"inLanguage":"en-GB","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/www.childrenscommissioner.gov.uk\/imo\/career-experiences\/welcome-to-imo-a-message-from-others\/"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-GB","@id":"https:\/\/www.childrenscommissioner.gov.uk\/imo\/career-experiences\/welcome-to-imo-a-message-from-others\/#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/assets.childrenscommissioner.gov.uk\/wpuploads\/sites\/3\/2018\/08\/ESSEX-CiCC.png","contentUrl":"https:\/\/assets.childrenscommissioner.gov.uk\/wpuploads\/sites\/3\/2018\/08\/ESSEX-CiCC.png","width":727,"height":408},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/www.childrenscommissioner.gov.uk\/imo\/#website","url":"https:\/\/www.childrenscommissioner.gov.uk\/imo\/","name":"IMO","description":"IMO is a voice for teenagers in care and for care leavers. Somewhere you can share stories, experiences and achievements, get and give advice, and find loads of great free stuff!","potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/www.childrenscommissioner.gov.uk\/imo\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-GB"}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.childrenscommissioner.gov.uk\/imo\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1688","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.childrenscommissioner.gov.uk\/imo\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.childrenscommissioner.gov.uk\/imo\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.childrenscommissioner.gov.uk\/imo\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/12"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.childrenscommissioner.gov.uk\/imo\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1688"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.childrenscommissioner.gov.uk\/imo\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1688\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":6001,"href":"https:\/\/www.childrenscommissioner.gov.uk\/imo\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1688\/revisions\/6001"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.childrenscommissioner.gov.uk\/imo\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/1690"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.childrenscommissioner.gov.uk\/imo\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1688"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.childrenscommissioner.gov.uk\/imo\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1688"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.childrenscommissioner.gov.uk\/imo\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1688"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}