May 27, 2026 · 52 min · 10 segments
"I didn't leave the care system. The care system left me." Sam Gardner spent 21 years in care. He now delivers transformative talks and training for those supporting care-experienced children -and…
Sam GardnerGuestCarmel SorbyHost
I think, I think if I had one dreamTwo dreams I've got for the, uh, for the care system till I die and, and unless my mind changes, and it is delusional, my dream.
But I think delusional optimism is the only way to change, and you know, if I can be delusional and change it a little bit, then I've, I've done my job.
My dream is to take the age off completely, to actually leave when you're ready.
Well, they don't leave when they're ready, because what 18-year-old, what 16-year-old, what 18-year-old is ready for the world in 2026? What 21-year-old really is ready for the world? Look at the, the housing crisis.
The data is screamingly obvious that children in care are four times, depending on where you are, four times more likely to commit suicide.
We're almost guaran- we, we, we are twice as likely to leave school and not get a job straight away.
We've been sent signals our whole life that we're different and that we don't belong.
We're pushed into the care system at our most vulnerable t- it's very rare you get, like, I think it's in England it's something like 67% of children go into care because of abuse and neglect.
So we take our most vulnerable children, and then we get them to a certain age, and then we say, "All right, let's put, let's, let's use the word independent." Independence is a cop-out.
It's an absolute cop-out for neglect, and one thing I said the other day was, "Who is the abuser here?" And that's a very militant, radical thing to say, I know.
Like over Christmas, I was contacted by a, a girl who was turning 18 over December, and she was le- she left care at 18 in January, and she was...
I said, "Have you got a pathway plan?" She was like, "What's that?" She didn't even know she had a pathway plan.
She s- they said she made herself intentionally homeless because she didn't feel safe in her hostel, so she, she, she ran away from the place.
I think, I think if I had one dreamTwo dreams I've got for the, uh, for the care system till I die and, and unless my mind changes, and it is delusional, my dream.
But I think delusional optimism is the only way to change, and you know, if I can be delusional and change it a little bit, then I've, I've done my job.
My dream is to take the age off completely, to actually leave when you're ready.
Well, they don't leave when they're ready, because what 18-year-old, what 16-year-old, what 18-year-old is ready for the world in 2026? What 21-year-old really is ready for the world? Look at the, the housing crisis.
The data is screamingly obvious that children in care are four times, depending on where you are, four times more likely to commit suicide.
We're almost guaran- we, we, we are twice as likely to leave school and not get a job straight away.
We've been sent signals our whole life that we're different and that we don't belong.
We're pushed into the care system at our most vulnerable t- it's very rare you get, like, I think it's in England it's something like 67% of children go into care because of abuse and neglect.
So we take our most vulnerable children, and then we get them to a certain age, and then we say, "All right, let's put, let's, let's use the word independent." Independence is a cop-out.
It's an absolute cop-out for neglect, and one thing I said the other day was, "Who is the abuser here?" And that's a very militant, radical thing to say, I know.
Like over Christmas, I was contacted by a, a girl who was turning 18 over December, and she was le- she left care at 18 in January, and she was...
I said, "Have you got a pathway plan?" She was like, "What's that?" She didn't even know she had a pathway plan.
She s- they said she made herself intentionally homeless because she didn't feel safe in her hostel, so she, she, she ran away from the place.
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