Hey!
Welcome back to SpeakOut Junior, Who Cares? Scotland’s magazine for our younger members.
This issue I’ll be telling you all about all the fun I had at the Care Family Christmas event and our Care Day celebration in Edinburgh. We’ll hear about Riley, who has been performing in Moana the musical and we’ll talk
about what a social worker does. I hope you all had a happy Care Day. I’m looking forward to getting outside to play, I love seeing the flowers bloom and decorating eggs for Easter.
Buddy Love,
Send us your art, poems and jokes!
For a chance to appear in the next issue of SpeakOut Junior, photograph or scan your creations and email them to: membership@ whocaresscotland.org or post to 40 Wellington Street, Glasgow, G2 6HJ. Don’t forget to add your name, age and address.
Buddy Bear
12 Bear Street
Beartown
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Ask Buddy
Asking questions helps us understand the world around us. On this page, I’ll do my best to answer your questions! If you are still not sure, you can ask a grown up you trust or someone who works for Who Cares? Scotland to read over this page with you.
What is a social worker?
As a Care Experienced young person you have probably heard some of the adults around you talk about your social worker, or your ‘worker’, by now you might have even met them. Living in care means there are some extra adults in your life, besides your parents, whose job it is to look after you. This includes your social worker.
What does a social worker do?
Every person who is in care or their family has a social worker who supports them, but it is not always the same person. If you have brothers or sisters who are in care they might not have the same social worker as you.
There are lots of different kinds of social workers, but their main job is to make sure you grow up happy, healthy and safe. They can work alongside lots of other adults and services, who all try to make sure you and your family get the right help.
Your social worker is there to make sure you get what is best for you, but we know it can be difficult to talk to grown-ups about things like family and your feelings. That’s where Who Cares? Scotland’s advocates can help – they will tell social work what you want and help you get better at it too.
If you think you might want an advocate, ask a grown up to help you visit our website to find out more:
https://www.whocaresscotland.org/get-support/who-cares-scotland-kids/
Celebrating You
Our superstar member Riley, aged 10, was recently in a production of Moana at CentreStage. Who Cares? Scotland staff, Corran, Denise and Sharon, went along and were blown away by all the talent, but especially by Riley.
Riley got introduced to CentreStage by his teacher as he absolutely loves to sing and dance and attending his musical theatre classes each week has given him the chance to work on his skills. He has also been attending Bright Stars, our group for East Ayrshire young people. He said he loves coming as he gets to share his ideas, try new things and have lots of fun.
Riley’s highlights from the Show
Favorite Song: Shiny as it made everyone laugh and there were fun props.
Favorite Character: Tamatoa who is a gargantuan coconut crab that hails from Lalotai.
Best Backstage Moment: Riley really enjoyed getting to spend time with his friends backstage and made lots of memories.
Riley’s top highlight was that his parents came and watched the show which was a surprise!
This was Riley’s first time performing to a large audience and although he was a little nervous, he said he can’t wait to take part in more shows. He is already taking part in a singing competition at school.
Care Day Carelidh The
Care Day takes place on the third Friday of February every year and is a celebration of Care Experienced people. Care Day started in Scotland and it marks the date an important law protecting children and young people in care was made.
This year Buddy the Bear got all dressed up and went to Edinburgh for the Care Day Carelidh. The Carelidh is a ceilidh, a traditional Scottish dance party, in celebration of Care Experienced people.
Over 260 people came to the Carelidh with Buddy. Together, they enjoyed a live band, a food and drinks buffet, face painting and fun, a chill-out zone for board games and lots of dancing.
This year, our Care Day theme was ‘Challenging Stigma’. Stigma is when someone is treated unfairly for something that makes them different, like being care experienced. So ‘Challenging Stigma’ is when we ask people to stop doing this.
We also gave awards to some amazing people who we think are challenging stigma and making people think about care in a good way, like Emma Reeves who helped write the tv show The Beaker Girls and Dani Harmer, the actress who played Tracy Beaker.
Did you see these decorations made by the children of Beith Primary School?
Buddy had a great time and enjoyed dancing with everyone! Thank you everyone for celebrating Care Day 2023 and joining us at the Carelidh.
REVIEW
The book Matilda by Roald Dahl has been turned into a musical movie. Read what Lisa Moore, one of our Assistant Editors, had to say about the re-telling of this Care Experienced story.
As someone who has loved this story for years, I was bursting with excitement to see it. If you haven’t read the book or seen the first movie, the story is about young Matilda, who is a very clever, brave young girl with superpowers. She goes to a school with the horrible headteacher, Miss Trunchbull, but the wonderful Miss Honey shows the importance of being kind.
The film is bursting with bright colours and fun. Miss Trunchbull is scary, but don’t worry in the end Matilda gets her happy ending. Matilda’s bravery changes not only her life but the lives of those around her too.
As Matilda says ‘Even if you’re little, you can do a lot, you mustn’t let a little thing like ‘little’ stop you’, so if you can take anything away from the film remember that no matter who you are you can change the world.
We would love to hear what you think about films, TV shows, books or music. Ask a grown up to send your reviews to membership@whocaresscotland.org and you could find your review in the next issue of SpeakOut Junior!
A Cracking Christmas!
On Christmas Day last year, 90 Care Experienced people of all ages and from all over Scotland, came together to celebrate alongside Who Cares? Scotland staff, volunteers and of course, Buddy the Bear.
When our guests got to our special venue, they were given a hand-made Christmas tree decoration and a big mug of hot chocolate with marshmallows. Then whilst they waited for dinner to be ready, they played games like Dobble, and Snakes and Ladders. Then a magician came and surprised everyone with impressive magic tricks.
Next, we played Pass the Parcel, our guests loved this and we had to wrap extra presents to make sure everyone got a turn!
Then it was time for Christmas dinner. We all sat down to pull crackers and enjoy an amazing meal. There was soup, then turkey and then yummy pudding. After dinner, Buddy the Bear brought in a very special visitor! Santa had made it all the way from the North Pole to join our Care Family Christmas! He gave out presents and everyone sang Jingle Bells.
After all the excitement we settled down to watch the film Elf*. It was sad when the day came to an end, but everyone had had such a fun time catching up with friends and making new ones. We can’t wait till Christmas this year!
*Did you know Buddy the elf is Care Experienced?
Mini Makers
Spring Flowers
You will need:
• 2 sizes of cupcake liners –one big and one small
• Green card or paper
• Lollipop sticks
• Glue or sticky dots
• Scissors
A beautiful and easy craft which you can make into a picture or a card for someone special.
• A gem or pom pom or button
Step 1:
Fold the BIG cupcake liner in half. Then fold it in half again, again and again.
You’ll be folding the cupcake liner in half FOUR times.
Step 2:
Using a pair of scissors, carefully cut a curve into the cupcake liner.
Make sure you cut the curve low enough to give you petal shapes when you open it up. If you didn’t cut it low enough, just fold it back up and cut again.
Step 3: Step 4:
Then fold the SMALL cupcake liner the same way (fold four times) and cut the curve into it as well. Stick the mini flower onto the bigger flower. Then stick your gem stone or pom pom in the middle. Fold a piece of green paper in half by about 1.5 inches. Then cut out two leaf shapes on the fold. Use sticky dots or glue to attach the leaves to the back of the lollipop stick and then attach the lollipop stick to the back of the flower.
You can stick it onto A4 card to make a picture or use it to make an Easter card. If you don’t have a lollipop stick, you can paint your stem and leaves directly onto your background.
In It To Win It
Once you have completed the IN IT TO WIN IT pages please return them to us by Tuesday the 30th of May 2023 to be in with a chance of winning a £25 voucher of your choice.
voucher!£25Wina
You can do this by giving the page to your Who Cares? Scotland Advocate or asking a grown-up to email a photo of your entry to membership@whocaresscotland.org or post it to 40 Wellington Street, Glasgow G2 6HJ. Good luck!
SPRING SUMS
EGGS SCRA BLED M
Unscramble the letters to find the missing words. Then match the eggs by colour.
YOUR NAME:
PHONE: AGE:
WC?S WORKER:
Last Issue’s Winner: Freya (7)
Play our game of Easter snakes and ladders. All you need to play is: a little toy figure or coin to use as a playing piece. The first to the finish is the winner.
If you land on a chick, you can move forward 1 extra space.
If you land on the basket of eggs, you can move 5 extra spaces!
What’s On 2023
We can’t wait to have fun with you at our events this year!
JUNE
The Care Cup Powerleague Glasgow
A football tournament for all ages and abilities. We’ll let you know once we have the exact date.
29TH OCTOBER Time to Shine Festival Glasgow
The Love Rally Glasgow Green to George Square
To mark the end of Care Experienced Week you and your family and friends are invited to march with us from Glasgow Green to George Square to celebrate love for all Care Experienced people.
28TH OCTOBER
We will celebrate Care Experienced Week at our Time to Shine festival. Here you can dress up, dance and take part in lots of fun games! Last year our theme was ‘outer space’, I wonder what it will be this year?
25TH DECEMBER Care Family Christmas Glasgow
We will then end the year with our Care Family Christmas where you and your family are welcome to join us for Christmas dinner. Read how special last year was on page 9.
The WC?S Phone Book
Find out if we have an advocate in your area
Heather Nailard
APW Argyll & Bute
07769 325 000
Pamela Hynes
APW Argyll & Bute, Crossreach 07739 078 244
Sorcha Tams
West Central South East
APW Falkirk and Clackmannanshire 07598 580 320
Ellie Barrow
APW Edinburgh & Harmeny 07970 515 440
Sophie Morris
APW East Lothian 07985 046 739
Lisa Fleming
APW Midlothian 07712 872 078
South West West
Denise McMillan APW East Ayrshire 07932 101 076
Lindsay Cook
APW East Renfrewshire 07973 801 709
Morag Cantwell Advocacy Coordinator (Forth Valley) 07523 512 612
Mary Bateman APW Falkirk and Stirling 07739 078 247
Caroline Ironside APW Stirling 07849 084 996
Joanne Hunter
APW Good Shepherd, Sycamore and W. Dunbartonshire (mat cover) 07522 557 050
Jemma Kane Advocacy Coordinator (Kibble) 07540 823 286
Amy Goodwin APW Spark of Genius 07971 474 168
Ellie Crozier APW Edinburgh 07712 870 390
Keira Kerracher APW Edinburgh & Sycamore 07849 083 003
Ellie Barrow APW Edinburgh & Harmeny 07970 515 440
Fiona Simpson APW Glasgow 07787 560 472
Kim Campbell APW Glasgow 07712 870 343
Kieran Platts Development Officer Edinburgh 07841 033 104
Lisa Macrae Development Officer South East (East Lothian Champs & Ed Schools) 07980 956 139
Sheryl Kay APW South Ayrshire 07738 195 692
Corran Russell Development Officer South West 07849 087 461
Lynsey Emery Development Coordinator West 07980 956 140
Caroline Breen APW Renfrewshire 07394 418 025
Donald Walker Advocacy & Participation Coordinator 07712 865 958
Sophie Edwards
APW West (Peripatetic) 07849 086 432
Karen Kearney APW West Lothian 07523 512 796
Morag Cantwell APW West Lothian 07523 512 612
Sharon Edwards APW West Lothian 07779 451 117
Lynsey Emery Development Coordinator West 07980 956 140
Aimee Fraser Youth Worker 07849 090 685
Rachel Outram APW Renfrewshire 07985 089 947
Zoey Hillman Development Officer Renfrewshire 07484 089 832
Martha Simms Youth Worker 07849 085 041
Alex Horne Development Officer North Ayrshire 07841 033 100
Lanarkshire
Prajapa Seneviratne
Advocacy Coordinator North Lanarkshire 07849 087 753
Ray MacLean Advocacy Coordinator North Lanarkshire 07523 512 800
Brenda Ann Murphy
APW North Lanarkshire 07849 083 141
Elle Scott
APW North Lanarkshire (Mat Cover) 07849 086 188
Jacqueline McLachlan
APW North Lanarkshire 07841 033 020
North North East
Katie Kennedy
APW Highland 07841 878 953
Jantine Van Loon APW Highland 07850 852 708
Kirsteen Wood APW Highland 07523 512 610
Lynne Williamson
APW Aberdeenshire 07712 869 576
Abigail Pass
APW Angus/Siblings CHS
Aberdeenshire 07810 570 222
Kerry Connor APW North Lanarkshire 07841 033 019
Lisa Allan APW North Lanarkshire 07790 341 265
Mags Corr APW North Lanarkshire 07841 033 018
Russell Stewart APW North Lanarkshire 07849 083 248
Suzanne Niven APW North Lanarkshire 07849 083 248
Laura Campbell Development Officer North Lanarkshire CB 07849 086 191
Ewen Kerr Advocacy Coordinator South Lanarkshire 07970 515 442
Lynne Morris APW South Lanarkshire 07786 068 138
Michelle McAtear APW South Lanarkshire 07841 033 107
Callum Holt Development Coordinator South Lanarkshire 07769 325 162
Paula Campbell
APW Moray 07712 870 335
Kevin Denvir APW Orkney 07849 087 478
Kayleigh Griffin Advocacy & Participation Development Officer
Moray CB & Schools 07841 032 885
Jessica Varney
APW Rossie YP Trust 07849 083 246
Paul Lamont
APW Dundee 07787 436 681
NATIONAL OFFICE:
Judith King
APW Highland and Moray 07583 050 179
Sian Wild
APW Shetland and Participation and Project Coordinator
Donna Mcleod Bray APW Western Isles 07764 290 921
Connie Ross
APW CHS Aberdeen/CHS
Aberdeenshire 07748 494 341
Emma Mackintosh
APW CHS Aberdeen/CHS
Aberdeenshire 07515 330 681
40 Wellington Street, Glasgow, G2 6HJ. Tel: 0141 226 4441
e.mail: membership@whocaresscotland.org
www.whocaresscotland.org
Grown ups, you can find out more about our advocacy referral process by visiting our website whocaresscotland.org