You Said, We’re Doing

How our members’ views are shaping Who Cares? Scotland

We’ve got an exciting update about how your views are helping improve Who Cares? Scotland! You may remember that, in our last issue, we shared some of the fantastic feedback we received in our 2020 Membership Survey. As part of this, you asked for Who Cares? Scotland to discuss mental health issues in more detail; you asked for extra supports to help you attend our groups; and to include more opportunities for younger members to influence our organisation. Here’s a summary of what we’ve been working on!

Mental Health

Support attending groups

“In response to our Membership Survey, Mental Health is now one of the key themes this year in the Annual Participation Programme. This will give Care Experienced people the opportunity to directly influence the Scottish Government’s approach to mental health, as well as inform Corporate Parents and The Promise”

“You told us that one of the main barriers to attending national events was low selfconfidence, we all know that feeling of pure dread as we walk into a room full of people we don’t know. We ask ourselves loads of questions, and we can easily get nervous!”

- Shannon Boston, NRB member from Shetland

Mental health is a significant issue for our members, and already Care Experienced people have done fantastic campaigning towards in this area. We know how difficult it can be for our members to access mental health services, and many of the supports available need to consider the requirements of Care Experienced people in order to provide the best service possible. To address this, Who Cares? Scotland ran an eight-week campaign across July and August to gather your views on mental health as part of our Annual Participation Programme. Through our surveys and focus groups, we listened to your thoughts and are now getting ready to use these to influence specific policy areas, including Scotland’s post-COVID recovery plans! We will share our progress as soon as we can, but for now, keep your eyes peeled on our social media!

– Lynda Greig, NRB Member from Paisley

We want all our members to feel confident, supported and excited to attend our groups! To help support this, we’re creating a brand-new buddying system. This will allow a staff member, volunteer, or member that you already know to come to a group to help introduce you. If you’re new to Who Cares? Scotland, we’ll be delighted to get you in touch with a staff member or volunteer beforehand.

WE’RE DOING!

Including younger members in decision-making

“Being part of the Who Cares? Scotland family is something that all Care Experienced children deserve, regardless of what age they are.”

– Louise Kelly, NRB Member from South Ayrshire

We’re particularly interested in expanding the opportunities for our younger members to get involved and shape the organisation, ensuring Care Experienced people of all ages have a direct say in Who Cares? Scotland’s priorities. To do this, our NRB and Community Development team will be identifying new ways for members to give their views (with fewer surveys, yippee!).

What our CEO Louise Hunter says:

“I want to start by saying thank you to all the members who shared their views with us. Your honest feedback gives us the opportunity to grow stronger and ensure that our members are at the front and centre of our work.

You have asked for more inclusive opportunities; better communication; and a more personalised approach to membership. One of the ways we are responding to this ask is by launching our Get Into Summer activity programme, which will run across the country from July. This will be an opportunity for you to connect in person and have fun with other members and our staff teams. In the report, members spoke about feeling valued and represented, and that being part of WC?S is like being part of a family. I want to ensure that all our members feel like this and that every Care Experienced person in Scotland has the opportunity to be part of WC?S. As a membership organisation, making sure our members feel well represented, valued and connected is of utmost importance and something I intend to play a direct role in. So If you would like to get in touch with me, please email CEO@whocaresscotland.org and we can arrange a time to meet on zoom or I’ll write a response, personally.”

See all of our changes!

We’ve made even more changes which you can find on our website! Simply visit

www.whocaresscotland.

org/you-said-were-doing or scan the QR code opposite.