On May 25 we launched our latest report here at CREATE!
This report includes the findings of our post-care survey, in which we asked 325 young people with a care experience about difference aspects of their lives while leaving care. We dive into the big issues faced by young people leaving care including housing, education, youth justice involvement and leaving care planning – among much more. This report is an in-depth follow up to our previous research, so we can compare the outcomes for young people leaving care in Australia given the last 10 years of National Standards.
In the new world of COVID-19 ever-hanging over our shoulders, our 2021 launch was hosted online via webinar – an exciting change, opening up the launch to large numbers of attendees, making it that much more accessible. We had an incredible panel including our Executive Director of Research, Dr Joseph McDowall and some of our incredible Young Consultants, Emily, Adina and Andre.
To begin, Dr McDowall spoke through the findings of the report. A notable area of improvement was the increase in year 12 completion rates, with 57% of the participants having completed year 12 in the current study – a significant increase from our 2009 research. This is a great step forward, as education is well documented as an excellent platform for improved life outcomes overall for young people. However, we are still needing to see improvement in many areas across the board, including in the planning for leaving care and supporting young people to find housing after leaving care.
Following this presentation our Young Consultants were amazing with their contributions, each speaking to their own experiences navigating the maze of leaving care. They spoke with conviction, passion and each had their own suggestions for reform. We can’t thank our Young Consultants enough for their continued contribution to CREATE and the work we do.
To read the full report, head here.
To read the key messages document head here.
To read the First Nations flyer head here.
Media pack
We’ve put together some great resources if you or your organisation are interested in promoting our findings and advocating for change! Click here to download our media pack.
Launch Webinar
Video from Young Consultants
