The Independent Care Review, commissioned in 2016, spent three years engaging with care experienced children, young people and families. From this, seven reports were produced in 2020 outlining where Scotland’s care system had gone wrong and how things could be done better. The Promise was made as a result of these findings, recognising that the current ‘care system’ isn’t working, and ultimately existing to ensure that children and young people in Scotland can grow up loved, safe and respected.

As part of this extensive, important piece of work, it became clear that there was a need for support to be made available to care experienced parents of young children, and parents to be, to support them on their journey from pregnancy to parenthood. A partnership between Care Visions, Early Years Scotland and Scottish Attachment in Action was created, supported by the Promise Partnership6 and Care Visions Fostering and following a successful application to the Good Childhood Fund, the Village concept was born.

All three organisations have in different ways experience in supporting parents with care experience. All have heard from parents the ways in which they can feel stigmatised due to past experiences of care and how the experience of becoming a parent can have additional challenges when your experience of ‘professionals’ has not always been a positive experience. The organisations brought in strong voices of experience and by working together, The Village was born.

Click here to view the midpoint evaluation.

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