Seven young people who are helping to shape improvements to the Children’s Hearings System have visited the Scottish Parliament to share their insights on Hearings with the Scottish Government.
It was the first meeting with a Scottish Government Minister for the newly established Experts by Experience group from Children’s Hearings Scotland.
Four Experts by Experience visited the Parliament for the day, alongside members of Our Hearings, Our Voice, the independent board of young people who have been influencing positive change in the Hearings System since 2017.
The seven young people, who all have lived experience of Children’s Hearings, met with Natalie Don-Innes MSP, Minister for Children, Young People and The Promise. They were given a tour of the Parliament by staff of the office of Angus Robertson MSP, Cabinet Secretary for the Constitution, External Affairs and Culture, and they watched First Minister’s Questions.
The team shared a game of ‘questions Jenga’ with Ms Don-Innes, where each wooden block removed from the tower had a talking point to spark discussion. These ranged from light-hearted ice-breakers to important issues about improving the Hearings System.
‘We gave the Minister some quite hard questions, including, in a year’s time what do you see the Children’s Panel being like, and what needs to change? We also discussed what better supports need to be in place for people leaving care and leaving the Hearings System.’
– Gemma, Expert by Experience
