The Black Care Experience Charter

In order to continue to be the change we want to see, we have created ‘The Black Care Experience Charter’, a declaration of support in the form of 8 commitments for The Workforces to use as a Framework to improve the Care, Outcomes and Life Chances of the Black Child or Young Person and keep them connected to their Culture, Identity and Heritage as they journey through the Care System.

 We identify ‘The Workforces’ as all who work within Children’s Social Care Services and the Independent and Voluntary Organisations within this Sector.

We believe that implementation of the Charter, will bring to life the legal duty of Care stated in The Children Act 1989 “Local Authorities are to give consideration to the religious persuasion, racial origin, cultural and linguistic background” of the child to be placed”.

It will also bring to life the legal duty of Care outlined in The Children Act 1989 Guidance and Regulations Volume 4: Fostering Services “Foster Carers should be informed, trained and confident about dealing with issues relating to gender, religion, ethnic origin, cultural background, linguistic background, nationality, disability or sexual orientation, involving external professional advice and support as necessary”.

The Children Act embodied the Rights of the Child set out in the United Nations Convention.

Article 12 of the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child (respect for the views of the child) states that "Every child has the right to say what they think in all matters affecting them and to have their views taken seriously."

Article 20 of the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child (children unable to live with their family), states that “If a child cannot be looked after by their immediate family, the government must give them special protection and assistance. This includes making sure the child is provided with alternative care that is continuous and respects the child’s culture, language and religion”. 

Article 30 of the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child (children from minority or indigenous groups) states “Every child has the right to learn and use the language, customs and religion of their family, whether or not these are shared by the majority of the people in the country where they live.”

Implementing this Charter as a Framework to your Service and Practice, will help to see Black Children and Young People have a better Care Experience.

The 8 Charter Commitments

  • Number 1

    The Workforces to actively address the systemic racial inequalities and discrimination on every level across the Departments and Services.

    Left unaddressed this has the potential of continuing to be a hinderance and blocker to anyone seeking to be Culturally Competent.

    Left unaddressed this has the potential of having a detrimental impact on the Care received by the Black Child and Young Person in the Care System.

  • Number 2

    The Workforces to be Culturally Competent, on every level across the Departments and Services.

    Cultural Competency is not a one size fits all approach. It is good practice for these Workforces to understand the inherent barriers faced by the Black Child and Young Person, along with understanding the different cultures, in order to meet and promote each and every cultural need with care and due diligence.

  • Number 3

    Work alongside Services that are culturally specific and competent to work with the Black Community.

    See Number 2

  • Number 4

    Proactively seek to know and document the ethnicity of each and every Black Child or Young Person being placed in Care.

    Proactively engage in understanding and promoting their culturally identity and meeting their cultural needs.

    This will help the Black Child and Young Person have a positive sense of themselves and remain connected to their culture, identity and heritage as they journey through the Care System.

  • Number 5

    Create a safe, relatable space for the True Voice of the Black Child or Young Person to be heard about how they are experiencing the System.

    Once their ‘True Voice’ has been heard and listened to, where needed, appropriate action must be taken, in real time, without delay and without bureaucracy.

    Provide support to help the Black Child or Young Person heal from the triggers that will surface and wounds that will be open in their quest to help bring about change.

  • Number 5 cont'd

    It is essential that the Workforces create an environment where the Black Child or Young Person feels safe to trust the process to openly express their True Voice, without having to continuously authentic the details of their story. 

    Budding the Black Child or Young Person with a Mentor they can relate to, will help to create a space for their True Voice to be heard and understood.

    It is essential that Black Children and Young People are represented on Children in Care Councils and Advisory Boards, to express their ‘True Voice’ in a way that does not tick a box, fit an agenda or fit a script. 

    Expressing their ‘True Voice’ will help to shape an inclusive, up to date and relevant Care System.

  • Number 6

    Create paid opportunities (inline with Industry/Sector standard rates of Pay) for Black Care Experienced Care Leavers to Consult, join Advisory Groups, co-produce and deliver training to the Workforces, from a Black Care Experienced perspective.

    Provide support to help Black Care Experienced Care Leavers heal from the triggers that will surface and wounds that will re-open, in their quest to help bring about change.

    The lived experience of Black Care Leavers, will provide valuable insight, to improve the Services and Practices within Children’s Social Care Sector.

  • Number 7

    The Workforces to collate real time data on both, the Care Journey and Outcomes of the Black Child and Young Person.

    Collate this data without *comparative analysis to other racial and ethnic groups, within the Care System. 

    *Comparative analysis tends to dilute and negate our experiences.

    This will see Services within Children’s Social Care poised and ready to implement interventions to support the Black Child and Young Person to achieve their best outcomes. 

    This will see Children’s Social Care Sector become relevant and up to date, with what works and what does not work to meet the needs of the Black Child and Young Person.

  • Number 8

    The Workforces, to create their own Bespoke Policy on how to Care for and meet the needs of the Black Child or Young Person in Care.

    This will provide a footprint and legacy of best practice for others to follow.

A downloadable version of The Black Care Experience Charter can be found here.

Sign Up to The Black Care Experience Charter

Signing up to The Black Care Experience Charter is a commitment to improve the Care, Outcomes and Life Chances of the Black Child or Young Person and keep them connected to their Culture, Identity and Heritage as they journey through the Care System.
If you are part of a Team, Service, Department within Children’s Social Care or part of a Team, Service, Department within the Voluntary Sector of Children’s Social Care and would like to sign up to our Charter, you must first obtain consent from your Senior Leadership Team.
Once consent is given, email us at Office@thetransformedyou.co.uk with your:
  • Name
  • Name of your Local Authority, Team, Department, Service, Organisation (as is relevant to you)
  • Confirmation that you have read our 'Privacy Notice for The Black Care Experience Charter' and give permission for your personal data provided to be used by the us. The Privacy Notice can be found in here our Network Code of Conduct.
We understand that some aspects of our Charter may already be in place in and across certain Workforces, and so there is no expectation for your Team, Department, Service, Organisation to sign up to our Charter.
We also understand that some aspects of the Charter may not be applicable to your Team, Department, Service or Organisation, and so we ask you to commit to the areas that are relevant and doable to you.  
As signatory to the Charter, you will have the opportunity to be a part of wider Roundtable Network of support sharing best practice on how they are making use of the Charter. 
This will take place on a 6 monthly basis in September and March.
We will also aim to understand how you are making best use of the Charter for the purposes of evaluation and to keep our Charter up to date and relevant.
Additional support required from The Black Care Experience outside of Roundtable Meetings, will be subject to a Consultancy Agreement being in place.
If at any time you no longer wish for your Team, Department, Service, Organisation to be signed up to the Charter, email us at Office@thetransformedyou.co.uk to ask for your details to be removed.

As part of our Black Care Experience Charter Privacy Notice we will not publicly identify or share our list of signatories to the charter, however our Signatories are free to identify themselves.

“The difficulties black children and young people face in foster care have been known for a long time and it’s unacceptable that progress has been limited. Things must change, and it’s important that we at The Fostering Network play our part in making the change happen. This is why we’ve signed up to The Black Care Experience Charter – a declaration that we will do everything we can to ensure black children and young people remain connected to their identity as they move through the care system”. - Sarah Thomas, CEO of The Fostering Network (Sarah’s Blog can be found here)

“There is strength in numbers. Changing the everyday experiences of Black children and young people in the care system to a better one requires all of us to play our part. So please, sign up, join, engage, think – and most importantly – take action!” - Ellen Broomé, Former Managing Director, CoramBAAF (Ellen’s Blog can be found here)