Ms Karla Charles:

I thank the joint committee for taking the opportunity to hear us. The discussion is very interesting and I concur with everything that is being said by my colleagues.

The Barnardos conference yesterday on guardians ad litemis to be commended. The Minister has said she is taking a child-centred approach to these reforms. We have a couple of quotes from young people involved in court proceedings where guardians ad litemhave been appointed, particularly from a child who was sent overseas.

One of the key points is that we want children to be part of the decision-making process, not passive recipients. Where possible, we want to hear directly from the child. Where it is not possible for a child to speak directly, or through a guardian ad litem, other means should be used such as play, as the office of the Ombudsman for Children stipulated.

One child said when they were told they were going to court: "I thought we were in big trouble." That is a key indictment of the scary situation and intimidating process a young child faces on hearing the word "court". Any previous experience he or she has had has probably been very negative. It is an intimidating process for an adult, let alone a child. Another child said she had been told she was going to court but "it was never me, it was always them." The child was not part of it. The adults were speaking around her, at her and to her. The person who was sent abroad was a very talkative, chatty individual but said very little because she was unprepared.

I kept my mouth shut. That was not like me. I did not say a word. I felt completely silenced. I should have been able to say what I needed to say but I couldn't. Take the time because that could make the difference between feeling silenced or having my voice heard.

These quotes give the committee a flavour of what young people are going through. We would be very happy to follow up on it. We could even arrange for some young people who have experienced guardians ad litemto meet directly with committee members. We would have no problem doing so. We would like to keep this conversation open.