Leicestershire Cares is one week away from launching its new local charter that businesses in Leicester, Leicestershire and Rutland will be able to sign to say that they are committed to supporting looked after children and care leavers into independence.

The launch takes place on Thursday 31 October 2019, 8.30am to 10.30am at Leicester City Football Club, King Power Stadium, and is part of the Leicester Business Festival. If you are a business that would like to come along you can sign up here: Promise To Care Launch Event

The charter will be simple, flexible and tailored to what businesses can offer care experienced people. This might involve work experience, work tours or volunteering opportunities, or could be as simple as providing discounts on their services or contributing or donating items to group sessions.

The aim of the Promise is to provide care experienced young people with access to the support and opportunities they need to progress in education, employment and their wider lives. The promise will be simple, flexible and tailored to what businesses can offer care experienced people. This might involve work experience, work tours or volunteering opportunities, or could be as simple as providing discounts on their services or contributing or donating items to group sessions.

Leicestershire Cares’ care experienced young person said:

“There is so much stigma around the label care leaver. People assume that if you have been in care you are a troublemaker, that it was your fault. If you have moved around a lot from home to home, you must be a pain in the backside, but that’s not the case. We want businesses to be more aware of the issues we have faced during our lives, past and present, and that we are resilient. Hopefully this new understanding will help us work together in a more healthier way, that will benefit us and businesses.”

Leicestershire Cares’ care experienced young person

Nationally, there is a big push for businesses and organisations to support this group of young people. The new Care Leaver Covenant aims to get businesses to commit to supporting these young people. However, it is yet to reach local companies who we think could make a big difference to young people’s lives.

In Leicester and Leicestershire, there are around 1,200 young people who have experience of the care system. For a wide range of reasons, this group of young people are one of the most excluded and disadvantaged in our society.

Once the Promise has been signed by a business, Leicestershire Cares will provide information, advice and training on how best to support care experienced young people in the workplace and can also help businesses find care experienced people to employ.

Local authorities are the corporate parents to care experienced young people, however, all of us, whether an authority, business, education, voluntary or community organisation, have a responsibility to help this invisible minority succeed and thrive in the workplace and in their wider lives. #TogetherWeCan

The Promise to Care launch takes place on Thursday 31 October 2019, 8.30am to 10.30am at Leicester City Football Club, King Power Stadium, and is part of the Leicester Business Festival.

Book you place at the Promise to Care launch

For more information about the Promise to Care, please contact Jacob at jacob@leicestershirecares.co.uk.