On Friday, 21 February during Care Day Scotland our Corporate Parenting team were proud to launch a brand-new mobile app for care experienced young people, co-designed by young people.
Launched as part of National Care Day, an annual awareness day to celebrate care and compassion of children and young people with care experience, the app has been developed with the help of pupils from local secondary schools over the past 18 months.
Called ‘CE4U’ (Care Experience for You), the mobile app for iPhone and Android has been designed specifically for care experienced young people.
Free to download, its aim is to provide a hub of useful information and helpful advice on everyday topics including housing, travel, mental and physical health, recipes, job opportunities and entitlements.
Developed by young people for young people, the collaboration was made possible due to fortnightly Champions Board meetings that take place in our secondary schools. These drop-ins provide a safe space for care experienced pupils to get advice, plan peer events and access scaffolding and support to help them succeed.
The launch is part of the Council’s wider Corporate Parenting Strategy to meet its statutory duties to keep The Promise to Scotland’s care experienced community – in this case those living and studying in North Ayrshire.
‘Care Experienced’ is a now widely used term within the public sector to describe any person who has experience of being in care, regardless of the placement length, type or age.
Care may have been provided in one of many different settings, such as residential care, foster care, kinship care or through being looked after at home with a supervision requirement.
The new app is a brilliant example of how the Council is adapting the support it provides to meet the needs of its residents.
It also demonstrates our commitment to #Article20 of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC) – legally binding international legislation that sets out the rights of children and how we can uphold, safeguard and respect them.
In this case the right is: ‘Children and young people in care have right to special protection and help if they can’t be looked after by their own family.’
Youth Worker Laurissa Monaghan shares: “Thank you to all of the inspiring young people from across our secondary schools who have attended Champions Board meetings to talk and engage with us, share their point of view and outline what gaps there are in getting support.
“We’ll be continuing to work closely with our partners, staff, carers and the care experienced community to ensure infants, children and young people across North Ayrshire have the extra support, love, time and positive relationships they need to help them fully realise their potential.
“The app has been developed as young people told us that they wanted an easy to access one-stop-shop where they could find out about the support available locally and entitlements, on-the-go and in their own time.
“As Corporate Parents, North Ayrshire Council is committed to ensuring that everyone who is care experienced feels safe, nurtured and supported, the app is just one powerful example of how we are doing this.”
‘Care Experienced’ is a now widely used term within the public sector to describe any person who has experience of being in care, regardless of the placement length, type or age. Care may have been provided in one of many different settings, such as residential care, foster care, kinship care or through being looked after at home with a supervision requirement.
“Please help us to spread the word about the upcoming Employability and Skills event. This is a fantastic opportunity to meet with our employability partners and find out about the wealth of opportunities available locally and across the council. We look forward to seeing everyone there on the day!”Jenny Lewis Corporate Parenting Engagement and Participation Lead
On Care Day (21 Feb), the Corporate Parenting team were also proud to host an evening celebration dinner at Redburn Community Hub with a two-course meal provided by Friends of Redburn.
The team have also announced their upcoming – and first-ever – care experienced skills and employability fair on Wednesday 23 April 2025 at the Volunteer Rooms in Irvine.
Taking place from 10am until midday, confirmed attendees providing information at the drop-in information event include:
- Ayrshire College – with information on courses and training in further education
- CEIS Ayrshire – job-seeking services including CV support and interview coaching
- Community ESOL team – helping ‘English Speakers of other languages’ to develop their language skills, meet new friends in their community and overcome barriers
- Equal supported employment – offering a wide range of tailored support to get people back into work, start work for the first time or take a step up the career ladder (part of the Council’s Your Next Move, Working North Ayrshire employability programme)
- North Ayrshire Active Schools – providing opportunities for young people to participate in physical activity and sports
- North Ayrshire Corporate Parenting team – hosting the event and sharing the Council’s progress as corporate parents to #KeepThePromise to care experienced young people
- Developing the Young Workforce – the team leading a Scottish Government strategy with an aim of helping young people into employment
- Locality teams – part of the Council’s Community Learning and Development team, with info on community groups, support and volunteering opportunities available in your area
- Money Matters – welfare rights advisors offering benefits and entitlements advice/support
- MCR Pathways – offering one-to-one mentoring support for young people in North Ayrshire
- Other corporate parents – including community reps from Police Scotland and Scottish Fire & Rescue Service
- Your Next Move, Working North Ayrshire – North Ayrshire Council’s employability service with representatives from our Modern Apprenticeships team
The event will be set up as a stall format with local partners attending to share information, resources, freebies, taster activities, course sign-ups, feedback opportunities, advocacy, welfare rights, and much, much more.
Part of the Council’s Connected Communities team, the Corporate Parenting team are responsible for the delivering and reporting upon the Council’s Corporate Parenting Plan 2023-2026.
Save the date and stay tuned to the @NorthAyrshireCorporateParenting Facebook page and X @OneVoiceNA for further updates.