We’ve been talking with Sheffield City Council for a few months about running LifeSwap. During National Care Leavers Week on October 24th 2007 five Care Leavers from Sheffield and five senior officers and members from the council will take a photo every hour on a mobile phone camera and send the pictures with captions to the LifeSwap site. A snapshot of those ten lives will build over the day and if our previous experience is anything to go by a fascinating contrast in lives will show.
But that is just one small part of the effect of the event. Sheffield are putting as much into and getting as much out of the preparation for the event. A group of young people are responsible for organising the event. They will decide which care leavers and which council people will take part. The Corporate Parenting Panel of councillors have shown a lot of interest in
signing up to the idea and it’s raised lots of questions about what their role
and responsibilities are towards Care Leavers. Deciding to run LifeSwap is acting as a catalyst to generate awareness about children in care even before the event has taken place.
Which of course is going to be needed when the June 2007 White Paper, Care Matters: Time For Change comes into effect.
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