This article from CELCIS explores the Scottish Government’s consultation on creating a universal definition of “care experience”, advocating for language and policy that reflect diverse cultural contexts—including those of people from the Global South now living in Scotland. It highlights how existing definitions often fail to acknowledge informal or culturally distinct forms of care (such as kinship arrangements in different cultural settings) and argues that a broader, inclusive definition could promote equity in access to support services for all care‑experienced people.