8 September 2025
Young people are informing the way one of Australia’s most experienced national providers of out-of-home care empowers children ahead of Child Protection Week.
Life Without Barriers has been working alongside young people with personal experience of out-of-home care to inform its approach to supporting children and keeping them safe.
The organisation’s National Youth Advisory Group - made up of 15 young people aged 15-to-25 from across Australia – is shaping how the organisation listens and responds to the views and perspectives of young people in care.
As well as contributing to crucial Government policy submissions, the Youth Advisory Group has co-designed Life Without Barriers’ efforts to improve services through its Youth Accountability Statement.
This new commitment aims to help Life Without Barriers better support children in care by giving young leaders with lived experience of foster, kinship and residential care a say in the decisions that will impact young lives, as well as an opportunity to advocate for their peers.
Life Without Barriers chief executive Claire Robbs said for young people in care, trust starts with being heard, listened to and being involved in decisions about their lives.
“Children and young people in out-of-home care often feel like they don’t get a lot of choice, and we have a responsibility to change that and create spaces for young people to share their views and perspectives about how we support them,” Ms Robbs said.
“Meaningful improvements to out-of-home care services will only happen if we listen to the voices of people who have experienced it first-hand and involve them in decisions.”
The theme of this year’s Child Protection Week, running until September 13, is “Every Conversation Matters: Shifting Conversation to Action.”
“Everyone has a role to play in protecting children, and Life Without Barriers is listening to, and learning from, young people who understand the out-of-home-care system from the inside out,” Ms Robbs said.
“Having the National Youth Advisory Group guide our commitment to accountability is an important next step that will help us improve our services, standards and practices to ultimately empower children and set them up for a bright, happy and healthy future.”
Since 2015, Life Without Barriers has taken a proactive approach to child safety.
All staff sign up to the organisation’s commitment to child safety, We Put Children First, which explicitly describes Life Without Barriers’ expectations in relation to working with children, and how to speak up about any safety concerns.
Staff and carers who work with children also undergo extensive training and practice support activities to boost the organisation’s capacity to protect children and respond quickly and appropriately if they are harmed, or at risk or harm.
The organisation continues to work in partnership with the child and family sector, governments, and academia to build knowledge and share resources to help create a world in which all children are safe, respected and heard.
“Child safety isn’t just about responding to harm. It’s about education, teaching people to recognise signs of abuse, and creating environments where every child feels safe and secure,” Ms Robbs said.
“Accountability to young people not just a principle it is a fundamental way of working in our relationships with the children and young people we are responsible to.”
Tasmania-based Life Without Barriers’ National Youth Advisory Group member Tara Payne, 21, said:
“I think it’s important for organisations like Life Without Barriers to have a youth advisory group involved in decisions about out-of-home care because no one understands how these decisions will affect children and young people like those who have experienced it themselves,” Tara said.
“Our National Youth Advisory Group includes young people from all different types of care, young people with disabilities, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander young people, as well as young men and women.
“It means that things like children's rights, co-collaboration, and trauma-informed practice will consistently be at the forefront of what these organisations do, since they will always have those young people holding them accountable.”
Adelaide-based Life Without Barriers National Youth Advisory Group member Cameron Morris, 22, said:
“I enjoy being part of the National Youth Advisory Group because I get to help improve how Life Without Barriers works. It feels good knowing my ideas can lead to real changes that make things better for young people,” Cameron said.
“Young people with lived experience know what it’s really like to be in care. We’ve lived and breathed it, so we understand what works and what doesn’t. Our voices help make sure decisions are fair, real, and actually help the people they’re meant to support.
“Being open, honest and accountable to young people in care helps build trust. It shows that the organisation is serious about listening, being transparent, and doing what they say they’ll do.”
Please email media@lwb.org.au for further information.
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