THE NATIONAL LEADERSHIP NETWORK

Written by Millicent Wenlock.

I admit I never really perceived myself as a leader, or perhaps I never thought I’d get to a stage where I would be considered a leader. In recent years, we’ve seen a remarkable shift in how society approaches support for care experienced individuals to improve their social mobility, advocating for lifelong rights and taking steps to end the care cliff. Today, inspiring leaders
from within the care-experienced community are stepping up and creating innovative solutions to long-standing challenges, with the most ordinary people within the community inspiring me.

Last year, I was unemployed and essentially homeless, facing a very uncertain future as to whether I could finish my degree, let alone commute from Aberdeen to Stirling. I was fortunate to have come across the Unite Foundation I applied to be a community relations specialist for supporting the All of Us Community Platform in creating a nationwide community of support and empowerment for care-experienced and estranged students and recent graduates. It was more than a job to me, I discovered my leadership style and confidence and finally got the opportunity to explore my care identity and what that meant to me.

A few months before my contract ended, I decided I wanted to create a real, lasting impact in the community to support care-experienced and estranged young people to fulfil their potential by providing a group specifically to support them through education and employment. This is how I developed the concept for founding the All of Us Employment Group in November 2023 to level the playing field. The group’s holistic approach offers tailored career guidance, networking, skills and CV workshops and a wide range of opportunities. What sets the All of Us Community apart is its foundation in lived experience. This was my first experience of leadership and creating something myself. Seeing my network support by encouraging me and sending me opportunities was great. It gave me the confidence to build the group and to seek other opportunities advocating for care-experienced people and other marginalised groups, which led to me sitting on the House of Lords Committee for the transition from education to employment for disabled and neurodivergent people and eventually becoming co-chair of The Care Experienced Movement.

For me, my success as a leader has come down to the support I have received from those in my network and community, as they have helped me persevere through the rejections and the challenges I faced. While innovative programs are crucial, the real magic happens through effective communication and strong community networks, which many care-experienced people struggle to access. I like to empower and support those I am with by creating safe spaces for trauma-informed open dialogue, peer support networks, and open feedback to help with the constant development and evolution as well as cross-sector collaboration by encouraging education providers, employers and social workers to work alongside each other to support better young people which is how I got involved in creating the Joined Up Institute with UK Youth. I also think continuous development to improve my leadership and reflection skills is a major factor in my leadership ability as those are key areas
that are always evolving for a leader. So, I pursued the mediation certification with the University of St Andrews Mediation Service earlier this summer when I was offered a full scholarship. Another key part of my leadership journey growth has been my role as a trustee at the University of Students’ Union, where I continue to advocate for increased diversity on boards due to only 3% of trustees being under 30 due to the impact I believe it has had on my career path in learning from other board members and being able to understand decision making processes from an entirely new perspective which has helped
me reflect and utilise this knowledge in other roles.

As we look to the future, it’s clear that leadership within the care-experienced community is flourishing. As a leader within our community I look not just at creating programs and working alongside organisations; but to change narratives and break down systemic barriers. By embracing these principles, we can continue to build a world where care-experienced individuals don’t just survive – they thrive, lead, and inspire the next generation.