Broadcaster, TV presenter and inspirational speaker Ashley John-Baptiste joined community organisations Live Unlimited and Settle at the launch of The London Community Foundation’s match-funded care leavers programme.
You never really stop being a care leaver – it's a lifelong journey understanding what has happened and the deep-rooted impact it has had on me.Jenni Mohammadi, Live Unlimited
Earlier this month, we held our Supporting Care Leavers to Thrive launch event at the offices of programme partner, CCLA Investment Management. The event welcomed a diverse group of expert practitioners, local authority representatives, supporters and other guests, all passionate about helping care experienced young people in London. This latest round of our Youth Futures Fund is part of a £3.6m national care leavers programme. Coordinated by our colleagues at UK Community Foundations, the programme is match funded by Local Authorities Mutal Investment Trust (LAMIT), the largest shareholder at CCLA Investment Management.
We were very privileged to welcome our special guest speaker, Ashley John-Baptiste, whose new book ‘Looked After: A Childhood in Care’, was released in June. Ashley shared some of his story of growing up in care in London, in conversation with The London Community Foundation’s Harbi Jama. The broadcaster and TV presenter, who was in care from the age of two, recalled his experience of being moved between foster families and care homes and the profound effect it had on him growing up. The increasing feeling of rejection and isolation threatened to derail his schooling completely, but it was upon leaving care when Ashley was accepted to Cambridge University that things became even harder.
Forced to choose between the provision of student accommodation and access to a council flat in London, Ashley was abruptly faced with the realities of independent adulthood at just 17. That he went on to achieve success in higher education and forge a career in the media is to his great credit, but Ashley is clear that children growing up in care should not be required to show such resilience and fight at such an early age.
It’s no surprise that the outcomes for looked after children are so bad – we've just not been given a good foundation and set up to do well. No child should have to feel like they are swimming upstream and having to jump through hoops... required to be so resilient.Ashley John-Baptiste
We also heard from two London community organisations with expertise and lived experience of helping young people in care transition beyond it. Jenni Mohammadi and Sue Cocker joined us from Live Unlimited, a charity that provides opportunities and support to Barnet’s looked-after children and young care leavers. Rich Grahame from Settle – a charity that supports care-experienced young people as they move into their first home so they can confidently transition into independent living and thrive – completed our inspiring and insightful panel.
Jenni is a Live Unlimited trustee with lived experience of care and she shared her insights into the challenges of leaving the care system. Much like Ashley, her experiences are shaped by profound loneliness and isolation, from a lack of lifelong connections. Jenni explained her terror at the prospect of turning 18, when much of the necessary support is withdrawn, as well as her memories of the struggle to deal with adulthood and the responsibilities it forces on care leavers.
When it comes to providing support for care leavers, just keeping them alive isn’t good enough...Jenni Mohammadi, Live Unlimited
Live Unlimited started in 2017 to fill the gaps in the local authority provision for care experienced young people. This includes giving them the opportunity to try new things and explore their own interests – to make sure that they have the chance to have some fun too. Numerous requests for help with driving lessons led Live Unlimited to offer a formal programme to do this, with 23 young people passing their test since it started in 2019. Funding from the first round of our Youth Futures Fund helped Live Unlimited to pilot a forest school for young people feeling the effects of isolation post-Covid - to give them a place to belong and to know that they are not alone.
Getting a driving license is so important but it also leads to so much more – new opportunities, building resilience, social skills and improving relationships with adults...Sue Cocker, Live Unlimited
Settle began as an idea when Rich was working in a care home and saw the difference between his own experience of leaving his family home and that of those leaving the care home. 1 in 3 young people leaving care become homeless within 2 years and Settle provides a coaching programme to support young people as they are first moving into their own place. Without the safety net of a supportive family, missing a couple of months’ rent can quickly spiral into eviction and homelessness, so Settle concentrates their efforts on prevention. The programme covers managing rent, council tax and other financial responsibilities as well as how to get any help and support needed to thrive as an adult.
When young people leave care, we ask so much of them – that many do succeed shows that it is not inevitable, but they do need that support for transitioning into adulthood.Rich Grahame, Settle
The London Community Foundation has secured £150k of match funding for community organisations supporting care experienced young people in London. With your support, we aim to raise £500,000 to provide 6-8 community-led organisations with grants of up to £75,000 over three years. Our experience shows that this level of grant on a multi-year basis is greatly valued by organisations, providing them with stability and funding to create impact. We also know that a cohort of organisations working in different ways but with a common community to serve is very effective for building partnerships, collaborations, and sharing learning.
Donations to this year’s Youth Futures Fund will be matched pound for pound by CCLA Investment Management, for double the impact as we support young care leavers to thrive.
