(L to R): Shazia Hussain, Sarah Dimmelow, Paul Stuart, Janet Daby, Sophie Clarke, Elizabeth Hartley, Tonianne Doyle, Nina Howarth, Sherrie Austin
During the visit to Juno Oxton, the Minister met with the Juno team, Sherrie Austin, Juno’s Expert by Experience (care-experienced advisor), Cllr. Paul Stuart, Leader of Wirral Council and Elizabeth Hartley, Director for Children, Families and Education to find out more about Juno’s partnership approach to developing high-quality children’s residential care homes.
Sophie Clarke, Managing Director at We Are Juno CIC, said, “We are delighted to have hosted the Minister and her team today, and to have shared our journey from an idea, created with care-experienced young people, to creating safe, loving and local homes.
We’ve learnt a lot about what’s required to make a positive difference in the lives of children in our care, and we were delighted to show the Minister our work and discuss the challenges faced by small-scale, non-profit organisations.”
Steve Rotheram, Mayor of the Liverpool City Region, said: “At a time when there is an urgent need for more high-quality, local care options for children, Juno is leading the way and putting the needs of young people first.
“This is a national crisis but I’m proud that the Liverpool City Region is leading the way in helping to tackle it Large private operators in children’s residential care are pulling in huge profits across the country, costing councils over £1 billion every year.
“Juno is an antidote to that system. It is community-based, which means that more children can be kept closer to their local communities in safe, nurturing environments. It’s great to see them getting the chance to showcase their pioneering work to the Minister.”
