Community / ‘Meids pledge’ to be signed to mark Care Day
SHETLAND is marking Care Day – a celebration of the achievements of children and young people who have experienced care – with two events at Lerwick Town Hall today (Friday).
In a session entitled ‘Creativity and Care’, young people with care experience will also explore how arts and creativity have helped them to express and share their experience.
The ‘Meids Pledge’ will be signed by senior staff from public bodies in Shetland, including Shetland Islands Council (SIC), NHS Shetland, UHI Shetland, Skills Development Scotland and Police Scotland.
The pledge has been created especially for this year’s Care Day, taking inspiration from the Shetland dialect term ‘meid’ – a landmark historically used to help fishing vessels establish their position at sea.
In the context of care, a ‘meid’ has been reinterpreted as a corporate parent, helping young people to know where they are, or where they want to be, and helps them to steer their way to safety.
Under the Children and Young People (Scotland) Act 2014, a range of public organisations in Scotland became corporate parents to care experienced people.
The Meids Pledge was written jointly by SIC chief executive Maggie Sandison alongside a group of care experienced leaders supported locally by national advocacy charity Who Cares? Scotland.
Some of the pledges include listening and taking views seriously, acting with love to help people thrive and fighting one’s corner.
Chair of the council’s education and families committee Davie Sandison said: “As Meids, we want the same things for the children and young people in our care as any good parent would want for their child.
“We want our children to be resilient; to have a healthy and happy childhood, to feel valued and loved, and to have the chance to grow, develop and learn so that they can find their own way in the world as an adult.
“It’s important for everyone – not just for the council but anybody who plays a part in making decisions for young people in Shetland, to recognise the special and important responsibility we have in supporting our care experienced children to do well.
“As with all parents we know we will not always get things right, but today, we are pledging to do our best”.
The locally designed Care Day flag is flying at Lerwick Town Hall today and will be lit pink for Care Day this evening.
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