Who we are

The Care4Us Council is made up of young people aged 8 to 25 who are either looked after or have left the care system and are part of the leaving care service.

The council has three different groups:

• the junior group is for 8 to 11 year olds
• the senior group is for 12 to 17 year olds
• the care-experienced group is for 18 to 25 year olds

The junior and senior groups meet at Barnsley town hall on Wednesday evenings; the juniors from 4.30pm to 6pm and seniors from 5pm to 7pm.

The care experienced group meet at Future Directions, 18 Regent Street, Barnsley, S70 2HG on the first Wednesday of each month from 3pm to 5pm, and again two weeks later on Thursday afternoons from 1pm to 3pm. If you can't attend either of these you can come to the senior group meeting at the town hall on Wednesday evenings instead.

The purpose of the Care4Us Council is to work with young people's corporate parents and other services to make a difference - by speaking to children who are in care and other care-experienced young people.

Care4Us Council members also have the opportunity to take part in activities such as residential gatherings, regional work and fun events like bowling and eating out.

You can find out more about what the Care4Us Council does in our video below.

If you'd like to get involved we'd would love to hear from you. Please contact our youth participation co-ordinator Jo King on (01226) 753406 or 07734 693647.

Welcome pack

We launched the Care4Us Council welcome pack on 18 July 2019, to support children who are coming into care and help them understand what's happening, who people are and what their job is, and who they can go to for support.

Change your language

The Change your Language video was produced by the Care4Us Council and other young people who are in or leaving care.

It looks at how language is used by professionals around children and young people in care.

The video was showcased at the Social Care Forum on 21 February 2020 and its production was supported by staff from the Care4Us Council and the Children’s Rights Service.