Young Person Testimonial Archive
March '10
Mother of adopted young person
Hampshire
Towards the end of last year i telephoned you regarding funding for my son M.C.
M.C attended his first weekend with you in November 2009 and he absolutely loved it. I believe that, although there were some things that he was not keen on taking part in, he managed to complete every task he was asked to do- and felt so good for doing so.
His next weekend is in march and he is already looking forward to it. Incidentally, so are we. As parents we are sometimes to close to the challenging situation that children with behavioral problems have, which often results in conflict within our home. To have a weekend to ourselves every now and again , when we know are children are being taken good care of, where we can just go off and do our own thing or simply relax is just wonderful.
I think that you and your team, exceptionally Ian, do a wonderful job and to think that many of the helpers have actually come through the ranks and are now helping others is a superb gift to the children. I cannot thank you enough and would ask if you could pass my thanks on to others.
Once again, thank you all so much for what you do for our children
Yours Sincerely
S.C
Feb '10
Young Person
Age, 14, Hampshire
Dear dreamwall team,
Meow! Top cat team rules! (I am presuming this is their new group name!)
I loved that weekend, and I hope I can come again. I think you’re all very friendly and nice (I also think that Alex and Nancy are very Hyper! Not in a bad way though!) I really enjoyed myself. The meals are delicious, and I don’t think I’ve ever been so dirty in all my life! The wild horses are so cute! I thought Matt looked lovely in all the makeup and I bet he secretly liked it, no matter what he says!
Afra is also very nice and funny, as is Ian and El (In fact-everyone is great) it was well funny when Ian rugby tackled Matt and they both landed in a big pile of horse poo! My favorite bit was the glow-stick challenge and the camouflaging ourselves in the dark. I wasn't’t that keen on standing in the deep puddle, singing a song and kicking our legs about until we got soaked, but I would do it again....
Hope I’ll see you again.
From M.B
Jan '10
Young Person
Age, 14, Hampshire
"the horses was good i was a big scared coz i had one stand on me when i was little and haven't been on one since and i think u say to the others what we do or even show them the videos we have been doing like this weekend we couldn't get the remote to work for the exercise DVD so we made it up our selves and had a good time and maybe get some people to make a book of how they have enjoyed them selves and how we have been able to open up and tell everyone how we feel and not to be scared to say stuff.
Alex really helped me this weekend i got up set and she told me that you cant pick your family but u can pick your friends and that they are always going to be closer to you than anything which i loved and i now no that i need to forget the past and move on but i know deep down that i will always love my family but the rest of my life i have to concentrate on and these residential's are really helping me with my confidence and i love the fact that its a little group but would love more people to come so they can have the same experiences as us and every time i come to dreamwall yer i get emotional but so does everyone and i cant stand saying good byes when i have had such a good weekend but i will have to put up with that coz i know that every time i come away it is always going to be fun i don't think other children will have a problem with not wanting to come because once they have been the first time they wont want to go home!!! :) thank you for everything take care 2 hope to see u soon and everyone else"
Oct '09
Young Person
Female, aged 14, Hampshire
Dear dreamwall,
i just wanted to thank you for the Dream Wall experience. At first, i must admit, i was really scared. I've never been asked to leave home for a weekend to a place so far away from home to meet a group of kids that I've never met before. It was pretty out there to be honest, but ever since, i've never regretted taking the risk. From the first meeting of the staff and other kids i was quite comfortable. Everyone was just so sweet and lovely, i felt so at ease with them just like my mates at home. Every staff member was just as fantastic though! Everyone was really lively and friendly and i learnt a lot from you guys.
The challenges we faced on that weekend have given me strengths i never knew i owned. Walking home in the dark was a major problem for me because I've never had to face my fears in such a practical way before. But with the help of the other girls and a prep talk from Ian i was ready to overcome a massive hurdle. Thank you so much for this. I know now that we can all achieve anything, as long as we put our minds to it.
From such a short space of time i have built more confidence in myself, in my life and in my dreams that i wish to achieve someday. Also, i have taken a great deal of memories away with me, ones that bring me great pleasure and happiness in remembering and such memories that i feel they will last forever. I cannot thank you enough for what you have given me. You have changed my outlook on the future for good, and i will truly be grateful for that.
Thank you so much once again,
M.D x
P.S: Thank you to all the staff who made this weekend so special :).x
Sep '09
Young Person
Female, aged 15, Southampton
My Life at dreamwall
I have been going to dreamwall for nearly three years. here are some memories from dreamwall.
I remember when I first came to dreamwall because I was really scared and nervous because I did not know anyone.
I remember when I first met Kelly on Halloween. Me and Kelly made a witches costume together with a scarey top and strippy socks.
All of the group done an extravaganza. Girls group 2 done an 'OOmpa Loompa' dance. And I got a 'Beanstalk Award' I was so pleased. So that is all of my memories that I have at dreamwall and these memories will stay in my mind forever.
The people I will miss at dreamwall are Rachel, Kelly, Sam, Ian, Brett, Tasha, Afra, Brenton and Sarah Lou.
For all of the new people who are comming to dreamwall this year have fun and enjoy it.
Thank you team leaders for making me the person that I am today because without you guys and your support for all these years I will not be the person that I am today.
Feb '09
Young Person
Male, aged 17, Southampton
Dreamwall is different to all the other residential programmes that are used by social services. They are different as they make an effort to know the person they are working with. They think it's not just a job but a friendship, whereas other programme workers believe that it is just a normal working day. Many people in foster care believe that these programmes are all the same, so they don't bother to attend any of the new ones. However dreamwall is much different to the other programmes as they have specific programmes for children who have different needs, this makes them unique as no other programme group do this so loads of people are left out as they don't like what they do. For the new people they do a special started week/weekend to see what the indiviuals need as a person. This week includes basic skill building games at the beginning then go onto the team building exercises to get them into the dreamwall spirit. But as night falls, we don't go to sleep early, we go out to play night games. Their games are the best and we all settle down late to get to sleep. dreamwall does many more activities like river walking, painting, drama, dance and other fun activities. There is something there for everyone and thats why they are my favourite. However their work doesn't stop there, it carries on after the residential as they try to plan something they haven't done before that the young people will enjoy. It's not only about having fun, but building fun memories as well as building a strong skill base for the young people to use in the life ahead of them. They give us skills and with them skills you can watch our confidence grow, it is so lovely to see others grow to be the person they are inside.
This is what dreamwall does, it helps people like us to have a fun time with them, and to ensure that our lives are not full of sadness.
Jan '09
Young Person
Female, aged 16, Portsmouth
Dreamwall, Dreamwall, Dreamwall, where do i start? well, i've been coming for like, 4 years and during that four years i have learn't so much about myself and the people around me. I must say it has been the best 4 years of my life, cheesy i know ;) I have met some AMAZING people. no jokes, i love them all. My project, inside out, sadly finished :( *awww* but it's all good 'cos im a junior leader!!! you'll never believe how proud of myself i was :D i'm from Portsmouth and coming on the residentals gives me a chance to catch up with everyone from Southampton and have a good time, okay, okay, a GREAT time. Dreamwall has given me so much confidence in myself and others, i'm so happy i got that letter for the 1st residental, at the time i wasn't too sure 'cos it did sound like a 'fat camp' letter but then good ol' Kelly came round and explained what it was really about and i thought it cant be that bad and i've never looked back. The last year i've felt the benefits of Dreamwall the most, i can talk to them about anything and they ALWAYS know what to say and do so, i'd like to give a big ol' THANKS to them. They have helped the old me come back and just so you know, i'm here to stay!!! i know i know, don't get too excited :D My two best residentals were the extravaganza in '08 week and the bivi week in '07. Bivi week you hear me say? yess, haha, they do a bivi at my old school and i must admit it wasn't my cup of tea, sleeping in a bivi that you made yourself and cooking your own grub, but when i got invited by dreamwall to come help with a boys group i just thought 'whats the worst that can happen' so i went :) i remember one night i convinced myself a fox was in my bivi so i woke Kelly up crying my eyes out. good times. good times. and, doing the southdowns me and afra singing spice girls songs. After i got home, and recovered, i thought that wasn't bad and then the chance came up to do it with my school as a leader i just thought yehhh, lets do it, that one was wet and cold and our bivi got infested by ants but all in all it was a new experience and looking back on it, it was so fun and i have dreamwall to thank for that. Now, i volenteer for my schools 'Venture group', year 7 and 8 camp and bivi if i wasn't in Dreamwall i wouldn't of given them a second look and now, they are the things i most enjoy doing. Thankyou to everyone at Dreamwall :) You've turned my life around and i couldn't be more greatfull :)
Nov '08
Young Person
Female, aged 15, Southampton
I have been comming to dreamwall for 4 1/2 years and it has helped me to achieve my confidence, help communicate with others, and learn new skills that I haven't achieved before. dreamwall has helped me overcome my fears and made me come out of my shell and meet new people that have been in care and I know that I can talk to them and trust them.
I'm glad I come to dreamwall because I have done lots of things and stay out late and wake up early in the morning and help out.
Now that I have been comming to dreamwall I am a Junior Leader and I help other people achieve their fears and confidence, and if they need to talk they talk to you and help them out and make them happy.
dreamwall is a second family and I love it!
Young Person
Where to start from?! Before dreamwall my life was boring, troubled, not exciting, hanging round the streets and that and trouble would call and I’d get into trouble a lot. I had a bad rep.
But when dreamwall came along it gave me an opportunity. I had a ruck with Brett on the first camp and then went up on a bench and when I was up there I realised that these were my friends, not my enemies.
dreamwall’s like a second home I think, even though I’m not in care I still think that. I thank dreamwall for turning me into a better person.
I got asked to be a Junior Leader-that’s the best bit! And I got to meet people from Southampton without the rivalry!
Parent/Carer
Has dreamwall had an impact on his life?
He always had good compassion but now its being put to great use! Working as a team member and helping younger people has done him a lot of good-being responsible and caring for others has had a real good impact on him. His temper is so much more controlled too!
Has he made any positive improvements to his life since being with dreamwall?
A lot! He really takes time to think things through, rather than jumping in with no thought. He is a lot calmer now too. Dreamwall has helped bring all the great things about him to the surface. He now shows a lot more consideration to others, putting others before himself. He now chooses not to hang out with friends that drink/smoke/take dope- he would rather do positive things!
What makes you smile if he talks about dreamwall?
Eating vegetables and other foods (spag bog etc) that he would NEVER eat at home – thank you brett! When he talks about the river walks and challenges we just know that there is nowhere he would rather be! Thank you all at dreamwall from very happy parents x