Corporate Parent SCRA has extended a Keeping The Promise pilot to the Western Isles.
The Taking Control of my Hearing scrapbook was originally launched in Fife in November 2023 and yesterday (Monday 15 April 2024) it was launched in Stornoway.
The concept and design of the scrapbook came from Board Members from Our Hearings, Our Voice (OHOV) – an independent board of children and young people with experience of the Hearings System.
The scrapbook is part of a new ‘Understanding My Hearing Project’ which is being piloted in the Western Isles. The aim is to better prepare children and young people for their Hearings.
Children age six and over coming to a Hearing in the Western Isles will now be sent an invite to a Pre-Hearing visit and will also receive a scrapbook which is an A5 booklet.
The scrapbook includes pages for children and young people to write down how they are feeling, to customise their Hearing beforehand and to record Hearing decisions afterwards. It also contains information about their rights in the Children’s Hearings System and where to find help and more information.
Speaking straight after the launch event at the Hearings centre in Stornoway, OHOV Board Member Lisa Mason said: “It was really important to have all the key organisations together today to help fill in the missing pieces for children and young people coming to Hearings.”
Senior Practitioner Erica Murray from SCRA said: “I would like to thank all our partners who joined us at the launch. We had a fantastic response with social work, advocacy, education and the panel community all in attendance. There was a tremendous amount of interest in the scrapbook and the wider project.
“We look forward to working with all our partners to better prepare children and young people before their Hearing and help Keep The Promise.”