Listen Up - Social Welfare Portal

listenup!54 | Chapter 7A project worker from the service went into theadolescent unit once a week to run activities andprovide social support. These activities aimed tomake the young people feel happy; providing themwith something fun to do can help distract themfrom their problems and enable them to deal betterwith those problems:“It is important that young people are able to havea part of their life that focuses on them as a personrather than just what is wrong with them.”Project worker, the Caterpillar Service,Barnardo’s Marlborough Road Partnership, CardiffSome young people may find it difficult to engage infun activities and allow themselves to express positiveemotions, in the fear that this will be misinterpretedto mean they are no longer experiencing difficultiesor have high support needs. The Caterpillar Serviceprovided young people with a safe place and timeto enjoy themselves, along with the reassurancethat their support would not be minimised as aconsequence of engaging in such activities.These fun and creative activities can also help createa bond between the young person and the projectworker which may then make it easier for the youngperson to talk about difficult issues.This project developed further and project workersbegan to see and work with young people whohad left hospital. A young person’s transition frominpatient life back to community living presentsmany challenges. Having an existing trustedrelationship with workers during this transition phasecan provide young people with a sense of security,stability and support which they can draw on to helpovercome the barriers they may face.In some instances, project workers from the servicetook young people off the ward for activities. Thisrequired building a strong and trusting relationshipwith the statutory sector:“Critics of the project’s approach take the view thatit is irresponsible to take someone who is unwellout to cafes or to go bowling and the only place forthem is in hospital… Explaining to statutory servicesthat these activities do have a therapeutic purposebut are just carried out in a social rather than clinicalsetting has helped in alleviating some of thesemisunderstandings.”Project worker, Caterpillar Service,Barnardo’s Marlborough Road Partnership, CardiffThe project also worked to help young peoplethrough the transitional phase between youth andadult services. At the time of going to press, therewas only one adolescent inpatient unit, so youngpeople were often either placed on adult wards orsent out of the country.Moving on from the serviceWhen a young person first accesses an organisation,the service needs to make immediately clear whatthe upper age limit of the service is (25 years formost of the organisations involved in the project).This transparency is important, as it means that theyoung person knows what to expect. In addition tothis, the organisations need to be clear as early aspossible about what they have to offer the youngperson, and if their service is not appropriate,they need to help them find somewhere elsefor support, such as another voluntary sectororganisation or statutory services.