Creating opportunities to hear the voices of children and young people
In 2019 we listened to the voices of over 1600 children and young people about their feelings of safety, happiness and wellbeing.
Children have a right to be heard
Children and young people in out-of-home care have the right to have their voices heard and to participate in decisions that affect their lives.
Listening to the voices of children and young people is an important part of creating an organisation that is safe for children. You can read more about the rights of children in out-of-home care in the links below.
New South Wales Charter of Rights
Northern Territory Charter of Rights
Queensland Charter of Rights - older children
Queensland Charter of Rights - younger children
South Australia Charter of Rights
Western Australia Charter of Rights
How do we listen to children?
Our primary support for children is delivered through local case work and foster and kinship carers. These relationships are key to empowering children to be involved in decisions that affect them.
Life Without Barriers also involves young people in shaping our services, based on their experience. This includes:
- representation on the Life Without Barriers Practice sub-committee of our Board of Directors - regularly meeting with Board Members and our Chief Executive
- young people's advisory groups that bring representatives together for regular conversations and feedback on Life Without Barriers services
- surveys and focus groups for specific topics (for example, young people in our Queensland service participated in a study so that we could learn more about their use of digital technology, to inform how we can better connect with young people).
Through initiatives such as Listening to the Voices of Children we are hearing from children and young people about their views of safety and happiness. Read more about what we are learning here:
Contact us
For more information you can contact Melinda Clarke, our Safeguard Lead from National Practice and Quality Team: