CaringLife FAQs

General FAQs

What is CaringLife?

CaringLife is a secure, cloud-based digital platform designed to capture and preserve the life stories of children in out-of-home care. It serves as a central hub for creating, storing, and sharing meaningful memories, photos, and key milestones, ensuring that every child has a record of their journey, no matter where life takes them.

For children, CaringLife provides a personal, private space to document their experiences and build a sense of identity and belonging. It ensures that they retain access to their cherished moments and important life events, even during transitions or changes in care arrangements.

For carers, CaringLife is an intuitive tool to foster better communication and connection. Carers can contribute photos, notes, and stories to the child’s life book, helping to strengthen relationships and provide continuity of care.

For case managers, the platform simplifies case management by centralizing key information and updates. It enhances collaboration with carers and ensures compliance with documentation standards, saving time and improving outcomes for children.

By connecting children, carers, and case managers, CaringLife creates a holistic approach to care, improving emotional well-being, enhancing continuity, and preserving the rich, meaningful memories every child deserves to keep forever.

Who is CaringLife designed for?

CaringLife is for children and young people in out-of-home care - foster, kinship, residential, supported independent living, youth justice and disability services - their carers, caseworkers, and other key stakeholders who play a role in a child’s life journey.

Why is CaringLife important?

CaringLife helps children and young people in care retain a sense of identity and connection by documenting their personal history, which may otherwise be lost or fragmented.

How does CaringLife support children in care?

CaringLife offers a secure and intuitive space where children and young people can cherish and preserve their memories, photos, and achievements.

By celebrating their unique stories, CaringLife helps to foster self-esteem, strengthens resilience, and helps them build a deeper connection to their identity.

Security and Privacy

Is CaringLife secure?

Yes, CaringLife ensures the highest level of security and compliance, adhering to ISO9001 and ISO27001 standards and meeting GDPR requirements. All data is securely stored on AWS servers located in the user’s country of residence, ensuring compliance with local privacy laws. This robust infrastructure safeguards sensitive information, providing peace of mind to children, carers, and case managers alike.

Who can access a child’s profile on CaringLife?

Access is restricted to authorised users such as the child, their carers, and caseworkers, with permissions managed to protect the child’s privacy.

How does CaringLife comply with privacy laws in the UK, EU, US, Australia and NZ?

CaringLife adheres to global and regional privacy laws, including GDPR (EU), UK Data Protection Act 2018, Australian Privacy Principles (APPs), US laws such as COPPA, FERPA, and HIPAA, and New Zealand’s Privacy Act 2020. The platform ensures data is collected with consent, stored securely, and accessed only by authorised individuals.

Key measures include transparency, encryption, and compliance with user rights such as data access, correction, and deletion. CaringLife also follows robust protocols for managing data breaches and conducts regular audits to maintain compliance across all regions. This approach ensures the protection of sensitive information while empowering children in care to securely preserve their life stories.

Features and Functionality

What can be stored on CaringLife?

CaringLife enables users to upload and safely store photos, videos, documents, and personal milestones, creating a rich and meaningful digital record of their journey.

Can children contribute to their own CaringLife profile?

Yes, children and young people can actively contribute to their own CaringLife profile by uploading photos, videos, and memories, and adding personal reflections. This regular participation empowers them to have a voice in their own life story, fostering a sense of identity, ownership, and belonging.

Engaging in this process helps children build self-esteem and creates a meaningful connection to their past. It also provides an opportunity for them to document their unique perspective, ensuring their experiences and milestones are preserved. Participation in CaringLife supports emotional resilience and strengthens their sense of autonomy and individuality.

Can memories be shared with others?

Sharing is controlled through permissions, ensuring that only approved individuals can view specific content.

Does CaringLife have a mobile app?

Yes, CaringLife is accessible on both iOS and Android to ensure ease of use for all stakeholders.

Users can also access their accounts via desktop and tablet.

How easy is it to set up CaringLife?

It's simple! Just get in contact with us at hello@caringlife.com, and we can set it up for you.

What training is available for carers and caseworkers?

We provide free Zoom training for caseworkers, along with online tutorials designed for both caseworkers and carers to ensure they can effectively use CaringLife.

Is there a cost to use CaringLife?

There is a small monthly cost for Authorities and Agencies for a child or young person account while they are actively case-managed.

Once a young person leaves care or reaches adulthood, they have free ongoing access.

There are no setup costs or charges for Case Worker or carer accounts.

What should I do if I forget my CaringLife password?

Use the "Forgot Password" option on the login page. Enter your registered email address, and you'll receive a link to reset your password.

If you are a young person who doesn't have an email address, please ask your Case Worker to reset a temporary password for you.

I'm a Case Worker and I don't have login details - what do I do?

Please contact your Team Leader at your Authority or Agency, who should be able to set you up with an account.

If there are challenges with this, please contact us at hello@caringlife.com and we can help.

Carers

Can carers upload content to a child’s CaringLife profile?

Yes, carers can upload a variety of content, including photos, videos, school reports, certificates for sporting achievements, artwork, and personal notes to document a child’s milestones and experiences. However, carers can only view the content they upload unless memories are shared by the child or a Case Worker, ensuring the child’s privacy.

Who can see the content I upload to CaringLife?

Only you, the child, and their Social Worker can see the content you upload. Case Workers may choose to share important memories (for example, a child's first day of school) with new carers.

What happens if my child moves to a new family?

If a child moves to a new family, you can ask to stay connected with the young person and be able to continue to upload memories.

The new family will be connected separately to the child's account and will not be able to see what you have uploaded.

Can I delete content I’ve uploaded by mistake?

You can delete content within 24 hours of uploading.

After that, contact the child’s Case Worker for assistance if deletion is needed.

Will the child keep access to their CaringLife profile after leaving care?

Yes, children retain ongoing access to all uploaded content, ensuring their memories are preserved. You will also keep access to the content you contributed.

Care-Experienced Young People

Can I keep using my CaringLife profile after I leave care?

Yes! Once you leave the care system, your CaringLife profile remains yours to access and update. This ensures you can always revisit and preserve your memories, milestones, and important documents whenever you need them.

I'm care-experienced and think I have a CaringLife account - what should I do?

If you are care-experienced and think you have a CaringLife account but don't have login details, please contact your Authority or Agency and ask them to provide you with your login details.

If you have any challenges with this, please contact us and we will help.