Council guarantees job interviews to care-experienced
Care-experienced young people and adults such as Caitlin, David and Tyler pictured with the Council Leader Councillor Kelly Parry will be guaranteed a job interview with Midlothian Council.
New pledges of support
The commitment is among a range of #Keeping the Promise pledges outlined in a new report approved by councillors today (Tuesday).
Edinburgh College signed up
At the full Council meeting, councillors heard Edinburgh College have signed up to this initiative by also offering guaranteed interviews for local opportunities to people who have been in care.
Mentoring opportunities
Meanwhile, for those who have been in foster, kinship or residential care there will be mentoring opportunities offered by councillors and senior council officers.
Loved, safe and respected
Midlothian Council’s Cabinet Member with responsibility for young people, Cllr Ellen Scott said: “We have made a promise to care-experienced children and young people they will grow up loved, safe and respected.
Facing barriers
“And our promise to them doesn’t end when they move into adulthood. Research shows care-experienced young people and adults face more barriers and challenges than their peers who are not in the care system when it comes to finding a job or getting into further education.
Corporate parent
“As a corporate parent, the council wants to help redress that balance and the measures announced today will be key to a more stable, happier and confident future for care-experienced young people and adults.”
Complement existing support
Cllr Scott said the new measures will complement support already available to care-experienced young people, which includes help filling in application forms and clothing and travel expenses when going for interviews, if needed.
Fostering fees increase
Fees for foster carers will also be increased by 5%.
More could sign up
Cllr Scott said she was delighted other partners are currently considering committing to the guaranteed interview scheme.
Changing lives
“This is fantastic news, a great show of support that will change lives for the better and help get our young people on a future career path,” she said.
The Promise
Promise Scotland was set up in March 2021 after an independent review concluded that Scotland needed transformational change to support and improve the lives and wellbeing of our children, young people, adults and families across Scotland.
Our commitment
The #Keeping the Promise pledges are among the actions Midlothian Council is currently implementing to keep its version of The Promise to local care-experienced children and young people.
Who Cares? Scotland commend the move
Louise Hunter, CEO of Who Cares? Scotland said: “It is fantastic to see how committed Midlothian Council is to keeping The Promise and increasing the support that’s available to care-experienced people in their local authority.
Encouraging news
“The fact that the guaranteed interview scheme extends into adulthood is encouraging, as we know that the impact of care can be lifelong and that support for care-experienced adults can often be overlooked.
More to do
“We know that this level of commitment is being demonstrated by other local authorities across the country, but there is always more to do. It’s important now, more than ever, that everyone gets behind the goals set out in The Promise if we are going to achieve it by 2030.”
More information
The council’s job guarantee commitment means that any care-experienced young person or adult applying for a job within the council will be guaranteed an interview if they tick the box within the application form.
In the picture from left to right are Caitlin Daly, David Haggerty, Council Leader Councillor Kelly Parry and Tyler McNair. The young people with Councillor Parry are care-experienced and welcomed this new commitment.