National award for Wiltshire Child and Youth Voice officer

Cameron Draisey from the council’s Child and Youth Voice Team received his Frontline Award at a ceremony held in London on Wednesday (17 May).

Frontline, England's largest social work charity, held its inaugural awards to recognise excellent practice, leadership and innovation in children’s social work across the country. They also provide a platform to highlight and share the achievements of young people who have had the support of a social worker.

Cameron received the ‘Frontline Award for Young People.’ This is an accolade which recognises a young person with first-hand experience of the social care system and was awarded based on their achievements, or to recognise that they have gone above and beyond to help create change within the sector and for children and families.

He was nominated by Fiona Hayward, Principal Social Worker at Wiltshire Council, who said Cameron led with others on redesigning the Children in Care Council and launching the Child and Youth Voice Team.

This involved gathering the views of children with care experience in a more informal space and arranging fun days/group residential, such as zip wiring, to help build confidence and relationships.

She highlighted how Cameron has sought to create fun and innovative ways to engage Wiltshire young people with his team, encouraging them to contribute to local decision-making on topics that impact children.

Cameron has also played a huge part in changing how Wiltshire Children’s Services write and the language used in writing. This has resulted in Cameron leading Wiltshire training for practitioners and sharing his valuable experiences around the impact of writing on him.

Cllr Laura Mayes, Cabinet Member for Children’s Services, said: “Cameron is a great asset to Wiltshire Council. He has been instrumental in setting up the Child and Youth Voice Team and helping to give our young people in care a voice.

"We know how important it is for us to get feedback from people who use our services, so that we can improve on those services and make them the most effective for our children and families going through similar life experiences.

“My sincere congratulations to Cameron – this award is very well deserved.”

Cameron on receiving his award, said, “I am delighted to have received this award, it is a pleasure working for Wiltshire’s Child and Youth Voice team. Being care experienced myself, it is really rewarding working with young people with similar experiences to mine and to promote positive change for children in care and care experienced young people.”

Mary Jackson, Chief Executive of Frontline, said, “Cameron has clearly had a huge impact in his local authority, drawing on his own experience to improve the lives of those growing up in care themselves.

"Not only has he been instrumental in involving young people in key decisions around children’s services, he is also using his own insights to train practitioners. He is a remarkable individual and we’re delighted to celebrate the impact of young people such as Cameron, as well as children’s social workers, in our inaugural Frontline Awards.”