“It’s about…believing our own words”: Bringing together the voices of care experienced people

Rebekah Pierre is a care experienced writer, author, social worker, and editor of a new anthology, ‘Free Loaves on Fridays: The Care System As Told By People Who Actually Get It’, which brings together stories, essays, poems and letters by 100 care experienced children and adults. In this conversation with CELCIS, she discusses the process of developing this anthology and how she hopes the book will help shift the narrative of care experience.

World Social Work Day 2023: How social work teams in East Lothian have promoted staff wellbeing and development

On this World Social Work Day, Rogan Higginbottom, a senior workforce learning and development officer at East Lothian Council (ELC), shares how social work teams have supported staff wellbeing and development following the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic and in the face of ongoing recruitment and retention challenges.

‘Everybody has a different story’: How compassionate connections are helping to support birth parents

This Adoption Week Scotland, Melanie Thomson, a Social Worker for the Bluebird Project at Scottish Adoption, which offers counselling and support to birth parents, and birth mothers who currently take part in the Bluebird Project, share why compassionate, nurturing peer support is so important.

Staying connected: How connections – past and present – can help to write our own futures

This Adoption Week Scotland, Tegan, a Youth Ambassador at Scottish Adoption and Teen Talk Adoption, discusses her experience of reconnecting with her birthmother, and reflects on how building connections and sharing experiences with others can help to find out the most about yourself.

How students are helping to shape University-led and peer support for students with care experience

Sam Upton, President of the Strathclyde Care Experienced & Estranged Students Society, shares her thoughts on the support on offer to students with care experience at the University of Strathclyde.

Don’t Pity Me! Thinking Differently about Vulnerability

Retired teacher, adoptive parent and blogger David Woodier explores the disuse of the word vulnerability and wonders if we need to look a little deeper at what this means.

Money matters, so why do we make it so hard to get financial support?

As families continue to struggle financially this winter, CELCIS's Director (Acting) Claire Burns looks at how financial support can get to people who need it most and the new ways local authorities are working with families to do this.

Language and understanding at ‘the chalkface’

This Adoption Week Scotland, Dr Leanne McIver, Research Associate at CELCIS, discusses how greater inclusiveness for adopted children in policy, guidance and language is changing the face of adoption.

Mentoring in practice: An MCR Pathways mentor and young person share their journey together

On this National Mentoring Day, a young person who is currently a mentee with MCR Pathways and their mentor, Lorna Tilsley, discuss how their relationship has developed over time, navigating COVID-19 restrictions, and the impact that mentoring has had.

Change is happening - but more needs to be done for children and families

For all of us involved in supporting children and families, the pandemic has shown that building back better from COVID-19 doesn’t mean returning to our previous ways of working; it means resetting them. Now, as I reflect on the last 12 months, it is clear that Scotland is on the path to making the changes and improvements that need to happen – and are already happening – for our children and families.