Achievements of care experienced youths celebrated during National Care Leavers Month
The achievements of young people in Aberdeenshire are being celebrated as part of National Care Leavers Month, which runs throughout November.
The theme of the month is ‘Rising As Me: Overcoming challenges, transforming, and finding your identity’.
It highlights the resilience that care experienced individuals show every day and the personal growth and transformation that their journeys have inspired.
In Aberdeenshire, the work of the Young People’s Organising and Campaigning (YPOC) group is being recognised. YPOC is made up of care-experienced young people aged 12 and over, united by a shared mission: to use their lived experiences to campaign for change and improve the lives of others with similar backgrounds.
The youth-led initiative is supported by Aberdeenshire Council’s Children’s Rights Team and over the past year YPOC has collaborated with Adam Usmani from the Youth Music Initiative to create a powerful campaign using music and video.
The result is “Misunderstood”, a song written and recorded by the group about stigma.
Launched in February, the song and accompanying video have already reached professional audiences, including presentations at the Voice of the Child Day and the Pride in Practice national event for social workers.
Education and Children’s Services Committee Chair Cllr David Keating said: “Earlier this year, the Education and Children’s Services Committee welcomed members of the YPOC group and we watched the music video they produced, which was incredibly powerful.
"This came about when they organised a roll out of their work at a workshop for leadership of the council and encouraged everyone to make a commitment to care experienced young people, and this was mine.
“YPOC is unique and gives voice to real lived experience. These care-experienced young people use their experiences to drive real change - and they don’t just talk - they campaign, producing guides, videos and resources that influence how meetings are run, how corporate parents act, and how schools support care-experienced pupils.
“YPOC has had a truly wide-reaching impact and their campaigns have resonated in the Scottish Parliament, at universities, across other councils, and through our own work here in Aberdeenshire. It’s a testament to the strength of our YPOC group.
“I am immensely proud of YPOC. Their voice is powerful, their influence is real, and their commitment to challenging stigma and making a difference for other care-experienced young people is both inspiring and vital.”
The campaign’s goals are clear:
• To help others understand what stigma feels like.
• To show care-experienced young people they are not alone.
• To encourage adults — in homes, schools, and services — to challenge stigma and offer better support.
“Working as a group has really brought us together. We really liked hanging out with other people our age and getting to know people like us,” said one participant.
“It was really fun to work with people, make music to talk about the difficulties we face in an environment free from any misconceptions, getting to test new things and learning whilst our music teaches others.”
In addition to the music video, YPOC has produced a behind the scenes documentary that offers a fascinating insight into their creative process and the teamwork that brought their vision to life.
The Misunderstood video can be viewed at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_EAvcRYhVJI
To watch the behind the scenes documentary, visit: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dPN36KMW