3 Years of Success
Our Compass programme has now come to an end after three successful years of working with young people in care aged 13 – 16. The programme was designed to expose young people to even more experiences and options available to them as they moved on from education and embark on their next steps towards their careers. Underlying our delivery was a strong desire and passion to make a difference, enabling us to help care-experienced young people have a greater chance of success and fulfilment in early adulthood.
Programme Highlights:
Sarah Dyson, Programme Manager
“It has been a phenomenal journey that the young people on the Compass programme have been on over the past three years. They started out as shy 13-year-olds and slowly gained the confidence and power to speak their minds, taking ownership of their own decisions as strong minded 16-year-olds. Over this final year it has been amazing to watch them take proactive steps to figure out what they want to achieve next and see their aspirations grow from every new experience they have had. I am so excited to see what awaits them in their next chapter as they enter sixth form, college and apprenticeships equipped with the knowledge that they now have.”
What did our young people enjoy the most from their time?
Meeting people like me
“I had never met anyone who’s been in the care system until Compass. I think it is important to see and hear of other people’s experiences. Being able to talk about topics related to your actual experiences in foster care or asking questions about how other people are living and what’s made their experience more bearable for them has been really useful. Just knowing that there’s someone your age who’s going through exactly what you are going through makes me feel better. Compass has taught me that it’s okay for me to feel the way I feel because many people feel the same way about being in care and that’s normal.”
Compass Graduation!
“Our Compass graduation evening was a lovely opportunity to celebrate all that our young people have achieved over the three years on the programme. Not only was it great to see our young people reunited one last time but also meeting the support networks behind them in person, their carers and professionals that came along to support was a special moment to watch. There have been many, many, many memories made and the night was a great chance to reminisce about some forgotten gems – a highlight for me was the Photovoice project that several young people participated in and the spontaneous rap and beat that the group burst into as they waited for the arrival on the Photovoice lead. Our partners at Park Plaza were wonderful hosts on the evening and even led to some of our young people enquiring about working at the venue after polite conversation with the waiting staff!” – Sarah Dyson, Programme Manager
