New scheme hopes to "supercharge" care leavers careers

Children who've been in care in North East Lincolnshire will now have access to new support and career opportunities.

The council's Care Leaver Employability Strategy has received buy in from local health, education and police organisations, as well as businesses.

Director of Children's Services Ann-Marie Matson has been telling us about the challenges care leavers face: "Sometimes it's practical things that our care experienced young people need," she said.

"So in any family with any young person, we know the parental and caring role will be - Have you got the correct equipment? Have you got the right clothes to wear?

"Parents helping young people get out of bed on time, the right bus route. All of those things enable young people to to get to where they need to be, whether that be college, university, a job.

"So for our care experience young people, that absolutely is our role as a partnership - as their parents, as their wider corporate parents."

According to Home for Good, almost 25% of the adult prison population have previously been in care and nearly 50% of under 21-year-olds in contact with the criminal justice system have spent time in care.

This compares to those growing up in care making up less than 1% of the general population.

Youth unemployment is strongly linked to an increase in criminal offences.

"Some of the issues are in relation to their well-being," said Ann-Marie Matson.

"Some children and young people have experienced trauma and they need additional support to overcome those experiences.

"And sometimes we have not always seen that support in place. So it's really great that not only were there a number of partners and businesses, but we also had our mental health support teams also in the room pledging to support our care experienced young people as well."

"Success will be when we start to see more of our care experienced young people enter their adult life having opportunities of employment," added Ann-Marie.

"Opportunities of further training, more young people moving through to university, more young people moving into an apprenticeships across the whole borough."