What is the #WatchYourWords Campaign?
It’s a campaign to raise awareness of terms or words that are often used by professionals, that can unintentionally make a young person who is in care or care experienced feel uncomfortable and stigmatised.
Watch the video below titled ‘Introducing the Campaign’.
How did the campaign come about?
During the government briefings at the start of the pandemic the term “vulnerable” was used regularly as an umbrella term to describe children that were able to continue attending school.
This term left one member of our Children in Care council (C2C) frustrated and uncomfortable as they did not see themselves in this way.
It was another label that they had to bear that made them stand out as different and raised questions from their friends.
This led to a wider discussion around the use of language when professionals are talking to them or referencing children in care and care experienced young people and their discomfort with how some of the terms made them feel.
C2C young people came up with their 5 top offenders:
- vulnerable
- placement
- contact
- pathway plan
- respite
One of the offending words they would like to change is “Contact” which staff use to refer to a child in care going to visit their family. ”It's really weird to me for staff to describe seeing my family, my parents, my mum and my little sisters as “Contact”.
What is the purpose of this campaign?
To encourage you to play a part in changing corporate language and reducing stigma around children and young people in care or who are care experienced.
Watch the videos, share them, change your language, help change their language. Thanks!
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Page updated on August 30th, 2023 at 11:52am