Ten-year-old Dylan* lives in a home that is infested with mice, he sleeps on a mattress that has springs sticking out and wears clothes that are dirty and too small. Everyday Dylan wakes up in a house with no food for breakfast and no clean clothes to wear to school. The relationship between Dylan and his parents has completely broken down, which has resulted in angry outbursts and violence. He was referred for a respite break by his Family Support Worker who said Dylan would ‘benefit from a break and have time to regroup,’ away from the family home. She spoke about the benefits from spending quality time with adults and building positive relationships.
Dylan was extremely nervous and withdrawn when he arrived at Go Beyond. He didn’t talk to the other children or join in the games; it was clear that he didn’t yet feel at home in his new surroundings and was a bit unsure of how to interact with the other young people, or the adults on break. This slowly began to change throughout the week, starting when the group went for a walk to explore the fields surrounding the retreat in the Peak District. He started to come out of his shell, telling one of the leaders and a volunteer various facts and stories about animals and the natural world. The more interested they seemed, the more he gained in confidence and his stories became more and more animated. Forming this bond with two of the adults really helped Dylan to settle in, allowing his personality and sense of humour to shine through.
From then on, Dylan grew in confidence with every new activity. He loved whizzing down the drop slide at the Adventure Farm and couldn’t stop giggling when he met the baby goats and they kept nibbling his coat! Having barely said a word to anyone on Monday. But by Thursday he was running around the soft play area with his new friends, challenging them to go kart races, and excitedly taking selfies on the ‘old-school’ Go Beyond cameras with the other young people, all the while with a huge smile on his face. These are the photos he will look back on in years to come.
Dylan’s time at Go Beyond was clearly very special to him and he asked repeatedly if he could come again, adding ‘I’m never usually this happy – this is just so much fun!’
*Names and photos have been changed to protect identities.
