What is important to children in care and care leavers?
The questions in our surveys were developed with children in care and care leavers to reflect the things they felt made their lives good. We also use measures of subjective well-being that are used in national studies and collated by the Office for National Statistics (ONS).
The questions we ask around emotional health and well-being explore:
- Life satisfaction.
- Happiness.
- Feelings that the things done in life are worthwhile.
- Positivity about the future.
- Happiness with appearance.
In addition, children in care are asked about whether they:
- Feel their lives are getting better.
- Worry about their feelings or behaviour and are getting support.
We also ask care leavers about their experience of:
- Anxiety.
- Stress.
- Loneliness.
- Goals and plans for the future.
- Positive and negative feelings.
How are local authorities supporting children and young people’s emotional health and well-being?
- Making Christmas special for care leavers (Feb 2021) Coventry
- Fashion show to promote positive body image(Jan 2021) Sheffield
- Dance Workshop to build self-esteem (Jan 2021) East Riding
- Setting up a five-a-side football team to combat loneliness(Jan 2021) East Riding
- ‘Come Dine with Us’: monthly group sessions to develop self-esteem, cooking and budgeting skills and combat loneliness(Jan 2021) Isle of Wight
- A community based project: running an accessible allotment to improve mental health and links with the community(Jan 2021) Isle of Wight
- Using a team of specialist workers to support care leavers make plans for the future (Jun 2020) Wandsworth
To read more about what children and young people feel about their lives and their well-being, have a look at our publications and news items.
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