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Care Day 23

Care Day 23, our eighth annual CARE DAY, took place on Friday 17 February 2023. For the first time, there was no theme, giving everyone the flexibility to mark or celebrate CARE DAY as they wished!

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.

Two big regional events

The last two CARE DAYs looked a little different! Because of the pandemic, we celebrated CARE DAY 21 at home, and CARE DAY 22 was marked by a series of smaller events in local areas across Northern Ireland. For CARE DAY 23, we were delighted to host two large, regional events.

Care Day Fun Day

In the morning, we invited foster and kinship families, with children and young people up to about 14 years old, to join us for a CARE DAY FUN DAY. There were lots of activities for young people to try out, including giant inflatables, a bouncy castle, a petting farm, a craft zone, a dance party, and much more. The event ended with a big celebration lunch for everyone attending.

Young Adult Fun Day

In the afternoon, we welcomed care experienced young people, aged about 14 years old and over, to a young adult CARE DAY FUN DAY. Many of the activities from the morning stuck around, including the petting farm and the giant inflatables. We also had a pamper zone (with nail tech), a DJing workshop, a rodeo bull, and a karaoke party, with food! Buses ran to the event from all across Northern Ireland.

Get involved!

Care Day Mailing List

Care Day provides us a special day each year for children and young people with lived experience of care. Sign up to get all the info on activities and events straight to your inbox!

Register your activity

What will you do to celebrate Care Day 23? Every year, organisations across Northern Ireland organise activities and events to mark Care Day. We encourage our friends and partner organisations to host events anytime during the two weeks around CARE DAY, avoiding Friday 17 February itself.

Care Day 23 Brand Pack

As in previous years, we have produced a series of official logos and posters for you to use to promote CARE DAY where you are. On some there is space for you to add your own logo. They can also be downloaded and shared on your social media platforms.

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