Care Day 21
Care Day 21 took place on Friday 19 February 2021, on the theme Uniting the care experienced community. With Northern Ireland in lockdown, we celebrated online, with a packed programme of events across four days.
What is Care Day?
CARE DAY is the world’s biggest celebration of children and young people with care experience. This group includes children and young people who are or were cared for by foster carers, or other family members, and those who live in children’s homes. They deserve to be celebrated, on CARE DAY, and every day.
The first CARE DAY took place in 2016. It began in the UK and Ireland as a joint initiative across five children’s rights charities: Voice of Young People in Care (Northern Ireland), Become (England), Empowering People in Care (Ireland), Voices from Care (Wales) and Who Cares? Scotland. CARE DAY takes place on the third Friday of February, every year.
Wednesday 17 February: Leaving Care During Covid-19
‘I already had my own struggles. So when the whole world was struggling, it didn’t really help.’
Join Alicia Toal (Chief Executive of VOYPIC), Prof. Berni Kelly (Queen’s University, Belfast) and a panel of young care leavers, to discuss the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic and the associated lockdown restrictions on young people leaving care.
This virtual roundtable will discuss the findings of the recently published report on ‘The Voices of Young People Leaving Care During Covid-19’, research carried out by Queen’s University and VOYPIC. Booking essential.
Care Day 21 Events & Activities
Care Experienced Q&A
Join a panel of care experienced young people from across the 5 Nations 1 Voice alliance, as they put their questions to Koulla Yiasouma, NI Commissioner for Children and Young People, and her counterparts across the UK and Ireland. Hosted in partnership with Become, EPIC, Who Cares? Scotland and Voices from Care Cymru.
Open to all young people with lived experience of care and the adults that support them. Booking essential.
‘If’ by Rudyard Kipling
‘If you can keep your head when all about you are losing theirs and blaming it on you…’
Join us on our Facebook page for a special virtual reading of the iconic poem ‘If’, by Rudyard Kipling, performed by young people from the VOYPIC Participation Forums.
Care Day Circus Spectacular
Roll up, roll up! Join the VOYPIC Team and our friends at Belfast Community Circus for an extra-special live and interactive circus workshop, with all the tips and tricks you need to celebrate with the circus!
Open to young people with lived experience of care. Booking essential. Book online, or call Nicola on 07854 278936 for all the details.
Tami: Poetry Performance
Tami has been in care since she was 11 months old. Over the years, she’s had good times, and bad times. Join young care experienced poet Tami as she uses her word, her verse, her voice, to share her story of life in care, and to remind you: ‘You are not alone, and I am really proud of you.’
Open to everyone. Premiering at 2.30pm on the VOYPIC YouTube Channel.
Care Day Drum Connection
We’re starting a beat, and we need your help to send it all round Northern Ireland, and beyond. Grab a drum (or a pot, a pan, a bucket, a basin, a bowl or anything you can tap out a beat on) and join Damien and the young people from the VOYPIC Participation Forum, live on YouTube at 3pm.
Take a photo or video of your drumming and post it on Facebook, Instagram or Twitter, tagging VOYPIC and using #CareDay21!
VOYPIC Virtual Choir
Under the musical direction of Maurice Kelly, Musical Director of Allegri Choir, and led by young people from the VOYPIC Western area Participation Forum, the choir brings together young people with lived experience of care across Northern Ireland for a special Care Day 21 performance of ‘Put a Little Love in Your Heart’.
Premiering on our YouTube channel, then across our social media.
Care Day 21 Link-Up
We’re teaming up with our friends in England, Ireland, Scotland and Wales to host a virtual Link-Up on Zoom: a chilled place to game, chat and vibe with other young people in care and care leavers from across the UK and Ireland.
Open to any young person up to 25 years old with lived experience of care. Places are limited, so talk to your VOYPIC Youth Rights Worker or email us to book.
Care Day 21 Movie Night
Hosted by our friends at EPIC, log in and join us for a Netflix Watch Party screening of ‘Instant Family’, with young people from across the five nations.
Open to any young person aged 13 to 25 with lived experience of care. You’ll need a laptop and a Netflix account. If you don’t have these but want to take part, talk to your VOYPIC Youth Rights Worker or email us and we can help.
Saturday 20: A Kind of Magic Show
FizzWizzPop presents ‘A Kind of Magic Show’. Have you ever wondered where real magic comes from? Join FizzWizzPop on this virtual adventure to discover what it means to use her magic for good. An interactive virtual performance hosted by Mid Ulster District Council, in celebration of CARE DAY.
Open to young people with lived experience of care. Booking essential.
Saturday 20: Battle of the Bubbles
Do you think your Bubble has what it takes to go up against Bubbles across Northern Ireland in a fast paced, quick witted, high energy night of games, speed, knowledge and skill? Hosted by a VOYPIC young person over Zoom, with a Just Eat voucher for the Bubble champions!
Open to children’s homes and households of young people with lived experience of care. This event is now full.
Friday 26: Cook-along
Join our friends in the Belfast Trust and the Urban Community Chef to cook up a storm in the kitchen! Learn how to make a Microwave Chocolate Cake in a Mug, which goes perfectly with some banana ice-cream. Don’t forget to chop up and freeze 4 bananas before the online class!
Hosted by Belfast HSCT. To book your place, call 028 9504 0302.
Sunday 28: Magic Gareth
Join our friends at the Belfast Trust as they welcome Magic Gareth for an afternoon of amazing tricks!
This event is delivered online and hosted by Belfast HSCT. To book your place, call 028 9504 0302.
Hands Up for Care Day 21
On Care Day, while we cannot be together, we want to pass on messages of support to the care experienced community.
To show that connection, across Northern Ireland and beyond, put your hands up for Care Day: write #CareDay21 on the palm of your hand, along with your current location (eg. Belfast), and take a photo. Then share it on social media on Care Day, using #CareDay21 and tagging VOYPIC on Facebook, Instagram or Twitter.
Special Announcement
This Care Day, we made a big announcement!
For almost 30 years, the voice of children and young people with lived experience of care has been at the core of VOYPIC. Now, it’s our heart.
More from VOYPIC
This page is part of our archive. For what’s happening now, head back to Care Day.