What’s been happening?

In recent months, a number of care and Hearings-experienced young people have been meeting with professionals to develop this work.

Here are some of the things that they would like to see happen:

• Language will be based on strengths – reports should not be written about the avoidance of problems (‘no issues’)
• Easy read reports and letters will become standard good practice
• Reports will be owned by the writer and the person(s) being written about
• Children will have some control over what is discussed in their Hearing
• Language will include the child’s wishes
• Reports will capture the young person’s own chronology
• The ‘right’ language will be continuously evaluated
• Irrelevant background information will be removed from reports
• Young people will not have to repeat their stories and experiences to advocacy workers, just because they are independent
• Young people will be able to choose how they want to express their views
• Terms will be changed so no-one shortens them or uses acronyms
• Good examples of language used effectively will be raised and shared widely
• Jargon will no longer be used
• Report and letter authors will write to the child (the whole child)
• Authors and speakers in the Hearings System will understand the power of language
• Language used in legislation will be accessible and understood (not translated)