Youth Participation: Self-Awareness over Behaviour Control

By Emily Hikaiti, Director of the International Foster Care Organisation (IFCO)

Photo: Private archive of Emily Hikaiti

When we talk about the care system in Australia, we are talking about a structure designed to protect children and young people who cannot live with their families. This system, known as Out-of-Home Care (OOHC), includes foster, kinship, and residential care. While it intends to provide safety, it often lacks the critical elements young people need to thrive: connection, stability, and genuine relationships. Many young people in care feel like decisions about their lives are made without them, reinforcing the idea that they have no voice. Participation is a word we use often, but it needs to move beyond discussion—it needs to be implemented in real, meaningful ways.

Growing up in the care system, I saw firsthand how professional distance and excessive paperwork failed to create the sense of belonging and security that children crave, I felt a stigma that existed because of my experiences and developed a sense of urgency to be better that only existed because of the way people deemed me as ‘troubled’ or ‘a lost cause’. What eventually made a difference for me came with the individuals who took a genuine interest in my well-being, people who saw me beyond my ‘case file’ and invested in my goals, my healing, and my future. My journey of advocacy began when I reached a breaking point: Through working in residential care units I realised that so many young people were struggling, unheard, and unsupported. From there I decided something needed to change. Now, as a Director for the International Foster Care Organisation (IFCO), a Brand Ambassador for Adopt Change, and a representative for CREATE Foundation, I work to ensure that young people in care have a seat at the table where decisions about their lives are being made.

How Participation Changes Outcomes

Young people in care often hear that they are ‘not interested’ in decision-making or that they ‘don’t want to be involved.’ This is not true. The reality is that many young people feel their input won’t make a difference. When we engage them in meaningful ways, provide them with skills, and demonstrate that their voices lead to action, they show up and contribute.

At CREATE Foundation, we run Speak Up training, equipping young people with the confidence and knowledge to share their experiences in ways that lead to systemic change. These trainings have been a fundamental part of my journey, helping me learn how to advocate, find my voice, and connect with other like-minded young people who are now ambassadors and advocates in their states and territories across Australia. Through these programs, young people gain the skills to speak up and also engage with opportunities to experience environments where their lived experience is valued and where they can drive real change.

Making Change Happen

Change happens when young people with lived experience lead the conversation. It’s not enough to have professionals and practitioners making decisions about the future of care. We need those with care experience to be part of designing the solutions.

Youth Advisory Groups are a powerful way to embed participation into policy and practice. These groups allow young people to share their experiences and perspectives in a structured, impactful way, ensuring that the care system evolves based on real needs.

Young people must be the first point of contact for policy change because they understand the lived realities of the system better than anyone else. Their insights ensure that policies are not only theoretical but practical and effective in improving life experiences. It is not enough to only consider a Young Person's ‘care experience’, we have to understand that their lives are no different than your biological child. Would you be willing to do as much paperwork and as many outcome-based activities with your child and within your own family? Probably not. The reality is that children need to be raised by people willing to connect with them relationally, moving beyond the boundaries of bureaucracy and further into the attachment-based ideologies that create security in a person.

For those who feel that change is impossible, I want to be clear: it is happening. We are seeing a shift toward recognising that OOHC must move from a ‘child protection system’ to a ‘child connection system.’ Protection is not enough, it never has been. Children need secure attachments, genuine conversations, and the opportunity to build meaningful relationships. Paperwork does not raise children; people do. My success did not come from a clinical, distant approach. It came from people who cared, from my willingness to engage in self-awareness and healing with trusted adults who showed genuine interest in who I was. The clinical aspects came from using therapies like CBT and EMDR to process my emotions and reactions productively with certified psychologists and psychiatrists working within guidelines designed to help heal trauma, not designed around trying to ensure I thrive as a citizen within communities.

If we want young people to thrive, we must prioritise their participation, invest in their voices, and create spaces where they feel seen and heard. Change is possible, and it starts with listening and evolves with acting on what young people tell us they need.