Family Action has been awarded a grant of £326,824 from the National Lottery Community Fund to expand its PAC-UK Adopteens service for adopted teenagers across Yorkshire and Humber.
PAC-UK, part of national charity Family Action, launched Adopteens in 2015. This unique and innovative service, which was initially commissioned by One Adoption, is designed and developed by adopted teenagers to reach out and connect with other adoptees.
The grant from The National Lottery Community Fund, the largest funder of community activity in the UK, will be used to build on the already fantastic provision by extending the range and scope of events offered by Adopteens. The funding will also be used to build upon the voice and influence work, to continue to give a platform for young adoptee voices to impact change in the sector, and significantly increase service provision.
The overarching aim is for Adopteens to be working with up to 500 young adoptees in Yorkshire and Humber, by December 2025.
Tanya Killick, PAC-UK Adopteens & Projects Practice Manager, said:
Adopteens was created by young adoptees, 8 years ago, to better meet the needs of adopted young people across Yorkshire and Humber. We are delighted to have been awarded the funding from The National Lottery Community Fund, as this additional funding means that we can expand our reach and service into even more areas, and we are looking forward to being able to connect with many more young adoptees in our community who are harder to reach, especially in rural areas.
We have seen first-hand how essential connections like these are for young adoptees confidence and self-esteem, and how these connections help them to develop new skills, experience, and knowledge, and ultimately to help them to fulfil their potential.
Michelle Rawlings, Head of One Adoption West Yorkshire said:
The Adopteens project has really proved to be a lifeline for many adopted young people in the Yorkshire region. We are always so impressed by the fantastic opportunities the project team offer and we have seen the impact the team has in helping the young people grow and achieve their potential. We are delighted that the team will be able to expand thanks to this additional funding and reach even more young people with their valuable work.
Currently supporting 140 young people aged 11-17 in Yorkshire and Humber, PAC-UK’s Adopteens service offers a range of online resources, chat forums, social activity days and runs a Youth Council.
The Youth Council looks to give young adoptees a voice to influence practice and policy and to work with professionals including social workers, therapists, and education professionals to increase their understanding of challenges facing adopted young people and their families.
Young Adoptee, Paul*, said:
The funding is brilliant news for us Adopteens. We all love the group and having an opportunity to have our voices heard. Events like the One Adoption West Conference were amazing as we were able to educate and inform others of what being adopted is like, how it is different for everyone and the divergent experiences we all face. With this funding I believe I speak for all of us, we are so grateful for this as it will provide us with more amazing opportunities.
Joe Dobson, Head of Regional Funding for Yorkshire and Humberside at The National Lottery Community Fund, said:
We’re delighted to be funding Family Action’s PAC-UK Adopteens Plus project that has been designed by adopted teenagers to meet and connect with other adoptees. Thanks to National Lottery players, this project will support adopted young people across Yorkshire and Humber to thrive, providing information, advice and peer-support to improve their life chances.
Young Adoptee, Jane* said:
This funding for the Adopteens is amazing. Many of the members of the group have formed such a tight friendship due to the opportunities we have received. We all work hard to educate other people about adoption and hopefully help other people to feel less alone and to understand that there are many other people in similar situations. This funding will hopefully allow us to educate more people and meet more people in our situation. Thank you so much for this funding it will help so many people.
To find out more about Adopteens please visit www.adopteens.org.uk or email [email protected]
About PAC-UK
Family Action’s adoption support agency PAC-UK offers specialist advice and support to all parties affected by adoption and special guardianship arrangements.
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