Listening to the voice of the child is central to effective safeguarding and foster care practice. Its significance is reflected in the Fostering Minimum Standards, the Children Act 1989 and Article 12 of the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child. When listening to children, social workers and foster carers need to think about all of the different ways in which children and young people express themselves. Through what they say, the pictures they make and what they do, their behaviour. These are all the voices of the child and help to create a narrative or narratives which express something of their experience. Social Workers teachers and Foster carers have positions of power and responsibility and can add voice, ad voce,- which is the root of the word advocacy. This has always been a part of social work practice and is a precious opportunity to redress balances which are often weighed against children, young people, and the communities they come from.
