6 minute read
My Mission to Transform Lives: From Foster Care to CEO
By Judith AM Denton
My care experience journey began when I was placed in foster care at the age of 9 I was culturally matched and placed with jamaican foster carers who did their best to stick by me and raise me amid school/college exclusions and run ins with the law, which could have resulted in my time in their home swiftly coming to an end
I became a Care Leaver at the age of 26, yes 26 My foster carers, who were undeterred and fully aware that they would not be renumerated, agreed for me to stay and live in their home for as long as I needed to be there. Moving out and living on my own, I went through a crisis which impacted my mental health, but a miraculous recovery saw me healed, focused and ready to move forward to embrace the next new chapters of my life I say the next new chapters, because I believe “Your Care Experience is a CHAPTER in your Book and is not the end of YOUR STORY”; and so the next new chapters of my story include my experience of working in the Financial Industry, to then become the Founder and CEO of The Transformed You, in 2013 The Transformed You came about whilst I was taking part in Corporate Social Responsibility initiatives within the Financial Industry. Each month I’d go into school to teach Financial Literacy and whilst there I’d witness behaviour in School, which reminded me of my school days. I had the opportunity to take a closer look into the root causes of the behaviour patterns when the credit crunch hit the UK and I was made redundant Going back into Schools and supporting pupils (as a Behaviour Learning Mentor), I saw how pupils in care were often excluded from Mainstream School & placed in a Pupil Referral Unit or an Alternative Provision They were often misunderstood by the School Staff, their Foster Carer and their Social Worker, which would lead to poor outcomes and poor life choices
This caused me to take the time to reflect on my Care Journey, see a change that is possible and embark on setting up The Transformed You, providing an Intervention and Support Mentoring Service, that transforms the lives and raises the aspirations of Children and Young People in Care and Care Leavers, whilst ensuring their needs are met and their true Voice is heard, as they journey through the Care System
Celebrating 10 years in 2023, we’ve moved into our own space ‘The Transformed You Hub’, and can now also deliver our ‘My Life, My Skills’ Group/Peer Mentoring Programme to prepare the Care Experienced with life skills and employability skills for their next chapters of life after care We have a Pantry (our Foodbank) for Care Leavers and a Drop In Support Service
More information about The Transformed You can be found at www thetransformedyou co uk Now I understand that the Care Experience Journey comes with challenges for all who enter it, however I also know that the Care Experience Journey for those who are Black, come with an extra layer of challenges This truth stood out to me through my work at The Transformed You. Working with Children and Young People in Care from varied racial and cultural backgrounds, for me, there was a cause for concern in how Black Children and Young People were being cared for
With England’s Independent Children’s Social Care Review pending, it made sense to explore this from a national perspective to make sure that the voices of the Black and In Care were included in the Reviews call for evidence Forming The Black Care Experience in 2020, our 2021 Report was presented to the Review, containing not only historical evidence of the journey of the Black and In Care from the 1950’s to the 1980’s, but also the presentday voices of the Black Care Experienced. Black we define as a Child and Young Person whose Ethnic Origin is either African, Caribbean including Mixed Race with African or Caribbean Heritage The Care Experience, we define as being in Foster Care or in a Residential Childrens Home
Collating the evidence in the 2021 Report, it was clear that the present-day voices loudly echoed the experiences of those in Care in the 1980’s in relation to, Black Children and Young People not always matched with families that kept them connected to their culture, identity and heritage This impacted on how they saw themselves and their community and impacted on how they were cared for. There was little to no preparation for the wider world of racism or discrimination, with some experiencing this as they journeyed through the Care System; and their ability to achieve their
aspirations were not always affirmed or championed Our Report also highlighted that Black Children and Young People go on to have the poorest outcomes and life chances in comparison to any other ethnic group in the Care System. To change this narrative, The Black Care Experience saw the need to actively provide the Children’s Social Care Sector, with insight and solutions on how to raise and care for Black Children and Young People in their Care
This we do through our Annual Workshop Style Conference, through our Charter, which is a set of commitments, the Sector Workforces can sign up to and use as a Framework to help improve their systems, service and practice We’ve created Handbooks and put together a Directory of Products and Services tailored to the Black Child and Young Person in Care, and we’re able to Consult and deliver our Training Course, all to equip andempower the Sector on how to make a difference in the lives of our Black Children and Young People
The mission of our work is to reshape the narrative; this principle underlies everything we do at The Black Care Experience.
To find out more and connect with The Black Care Experience, feel free to visit us at www.theblackcareexperience.co.uk and Save The Date to attend our 4th Annual Conference on Saturday 15 th February 2025
