In May 2018 the Foundation awarded Every Parent & Child a grant through their Family and Friends Grants programme. The funding supported the Starfish project , which enables children and young people in London with special educational needs and/or disability or those at risk of exclusion to thrive and succeed in education and their communities.
One year on from the award, it is fantastic to hear how the award made a difference to the young people involved. The project supported the young people to develop their communication skills and self- image, making a short film to demonstrate their work.
They worked on their own ideas and plans for a theme and a narrative and used filming equipment to make a DVD, with support from Tiger Monkey and Starfish staff.
Jaspal Dhani, CEO, reported that the project had huge impact on the young people; they were able to speak about their personal circumstances, present themselves positively and engage with other people. The project enabled them to develop their capacity to communicate and articulate their needs more effectively.
It was fantastic to see 100% attendance at the sessions, with full active engagement with group leaders and other young people; there was collaborative working from the start with people they did not know and a willingness to talk and share stories.
Some of the feedback shared by the young people was:
“The project helps me to stay out of trouble and focus on my work”
“I wanted to make a friend and now I think wow, I actually did that”
“My goal was to be able to participate and commit myself to the project and I did that”
‘’I wanted to communicate more and learn new skills; I took part in the project and I did participate”
“I never really finish what I start but I did finish this project and I am proud of that”
“The project made me feel that I am capable of a variety of things. I have the ability to express myself and I can communicate with new people”
“I feel more relaxed around new people; I can show what I can do and I’m proud of what I can do”
If you know a community cause in a local area in which CareTech operates that would benefit from a family and friends grant, please get in touch.