"The staff were always present and easy to talk to. I felt as though I had access to their support at all times throughout the weekend.”
Our support team create safe spaces for young people with an experience of meningitis to share, learn and develop hope for the future.
Residentials are especially powerful because of the community created amongst the young people where they have time and space to reflect on and find similarities in their experiences.
One young person said;
"I enjoyed meeting new people and gaining insight into other people’s experiences...everyone understands the challenges that come with having after-effects.
"Taking time out of my normal life to reflect on how I am currently feeling and current challenges I am facing and supporting each other."
Built confidence
New friendships were built and plans made to meet up after the event and the young people built confidence to advocate for themselves and seek help with ongoing affects of meningitis.
A young deaf person felt confident enough to communicate through speech as well as British Sign Language, having received funding through our Rebuilding Futures Fund to learn BSL.
Advocating
One young person, embracing their new wheelchair, attended for the first time independently. They advocated for their own needs whilst building new friendships. They said; "I’m proud I was able to accommodate my access needs on this event."
Listening to other people's experiences, one attendee felt the weekend helped them to see that they are, “able to do things that I’m told at home I'll struggle with, and it isn’t impossible to be independent again."
To find out more about how we support young people and our upcoming events please visit our supporting young people page.
