• About Us
  • Who are we?
  • What do we do?
  • What do people say?
  • Why do we do it?
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Making mental health support, well -being and resilience development integral to all our services
Find out more about how we can help.
Our primary aim is to build the resilience, mental health and wellbeing of young people and families  to enable them to live happy healthy lives through bringing people
together and providing non-judgemental support, learning, and volunteering
opportunities.

Working as a non-profit social enterprise, we offer mental health support through the delivery of well-being and resilience building workshops and psycho-educational courses for families and young people, along with career and employability support; developing the necessary transferable skills to secure future employment. We empower individuals to build their foundations for the future.
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We take a holistic approach  to services providing wraparound support for all participants engaged with our parenting programmes,  with family support coaching, peer-led support groups and activities, specialising  in a trauma informed approach; making this an integral part of education and life experience. 
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We aim to:
  • Improve the mental health and wellbeing of children, young people and families
  • Provide Adverse Childhood Experiences & Trauma Informed Practice Awareness Training for Parents/Carers & Professionals
  • Build confidence and resilience in young people and parents through participation in workshops and courses
  • Provide coaching support and encourage peer learning and mentoring, participation and engagement in community volunteering
  • Work to promote employability and enterprise skills in young people and families, particularly from vulnerable groups within our society​
  • Promote interests and activities to develop well-being and social networking
​We are always happy to have a free, no obligation discussion about your particular requirements and how we or our Community Partners may be able to help.

 ​Lynne Howe - Director and Founder

Extensive  teaching  and management experience in secondary education based in Inner London and Kent. Trained facilitator for Racial Equality Foundation's Strengthening Families, Strengthening Communities, Adverse Childhood Experiences  and Youth Connect 5 parent support programmes, and expert knowledge in trauma informed practise. Graduated from Kings College, London, with a BSc Mathematics and  Education with PGCE in 1997. A further 5 years Recruitment Consultancy experience working with investment banking and blue-chip firms. 

Ayah Elmaazi - Director

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Barrister specialising in contentious and non-contentious financial services law. Practised in advisory, enforcement and civil litigation roles. Also worked on public law matters (including judicial review) and cases involving freedom of information, data protection, disclosure and confidentiality. Accredited mediator with the Centre for Effective Dispute Resolution (CEDR).

Mackenna Roberts - Director

An intellectual property lawyer, trained bio-ethicist, and widely published thought leader on how the law should govern cutting-edge medical therapies.With a masters in Medical Law and Ethics from King’s College London.Previously trained and practised as a commercial litigation solicitor at a top 50 soft IP London firm with extensive experience on high-profile cases. Taught debate at secondary schools throughout greater London and participated in pro bono street law workshops that empower youth with knowledge about their consumer rights and ways to protect brand, music and inventions.  Also taught theatre to inner city youth in Los Angeles and was also a Big Sister mentor for over 3 years in the US and on the regional board of its United Way chapter. Before becoming a lawyer she was an actor and remains passionate about independent film. 

Nana Bonsu - Systemic and Therapeutic Family Practice Adviser

Over 23 years experience in Children's Social Care and Therapeutic Family Intervention. Family Service lead in the delivery and embedding of systemic practice interventions in Early Help and Children's Social Care. Responsible for the introduction of systemic ideas and practices, and leading a team of family therapists, co-located in social work teams. Masters degree in Family and Systemic Psychotherapy. Strategic and leadership development of systemic practice within a holistic framework for social workers and practitioners; to enable a collaborative and strengths based approach in working with children and families.

Programme Delivery Team

Anne Newbould - Programme Facilitator

Extensive experience in Early Years and Youth Work, alongside Family Support. Trained facilitator for  Adverse Childhood Experiences  and Youth Connect 5 parent support programmes, and knowledge in trauma informed practise. Further experience in the delivery of the Freedom Programme for domestic abuse, Nurture Parenting Programme and Forest School Leader. Mental Health First Aid trained.

Amanda Simpson- Programme Facilitator

Qualified teacher with PGCE in Education and Training and Vocational Assessor. Extensive experience in Family Support. Professional development training in Mental Health, Adverse Childhood Experiences and knowledge in trauma informed practise. 

Colette Jones - Programme Facilitator

Advanced GNVQ in Health and Social Care (Merit) 1998 and qualified as a Nursery Nurse in 2000 gaining a Cache Diploma in Nursery Nursing. Over 18 years in the private day care sector, and retail business experience. Working as a community based family engagement and support facilitator.

Joanne Graham - Operation Support - Family Coach 

With a broad range of experience and certificates in Mentoring, Counselling Concepts and Safeguarding. Extensive experience  as a volunteer family support worker , trained  family coach. offering both emotional and practical support. Specialist knowledge and lived experience in supporting children with autism, offering well-being and  mental health support. 

Eden Beggs - Psychological  Operational Support Assistant

BSc Psychology and currently studying MSc. Psychology. Knowledge in trauma informed apporaches and Adverse Childhood Experiences. Mental Health First Aid trained.

Lucy James - Programme Facilitator

Over 15 years teaching and moderation experience based in Merseyside. Graduated from the University of Liverpool in 1996, then completed a PGCE (Primary Education) at Liverpool Hope University in 1998. Currently works as a tutor with home schooled children and is training to be a counsellor. Is a qualified mental health first aider, has a Level 3 safeguarding qualification and has recently completed training to deliver the Youth Connect 5 and ACEs Recovery course. 

Operational Support Team

Gisella Rae

Liam Comer
Admistrative Operational Support
Project Co-ordinator & Facilitator

Operational Support Volunteers 

Amy McGuiness

Tracy Williams

Katie Harper

Anne Bobby

Jo Graham

Kerry Jones

Lisa Riley

Michelle Williams

Pringle - Emotional Support Volunteer

Through our work with young people, the need to support the development of positive mental health, well-being and resilience became apparent. As a result we now also work with adults offering parent/carer training programmes to share techniques, skills and knowledge to support them in raising healthy, happy children with strong emotional well-being and resilience. We specialise in implementation and promotion of trauma informed practise to ensure the best outcomes for our families.

This includes courses on Adverse Childhood Experiences Recovery, Youth Connect 5 mental health suppport and resilience building, and Strengthening Families Strengthening Communities parent programmes. Wraparound support and resilience building is offered to all participants to support their personal development, promote positive mental health and maintain their own wellbeing.

We also offer standalone workshops for both young people and adults on Managing Stress & Anxiety, Developing Emotional Self-regulation, Well-being & Resilience, Adverse Childhood Experiences Awareness, Stopping Negative Self-Talk and other topic areas. We provide professional training on Adverse Childhood Experiences and the principles of a trauma informed approach with CPD accreditation.

We  continue providing employability guidance and support for both educators and young people .  Our lesson plan toolkits and bespoke curriculum design support accreditation by providing the activities and evidence, so that organisations can create a clear strategy for careers and employability provision. Easy to follow lesson plans and resources mean that those delivering session can work with confidence and need not be qualified teachers or trainers.
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Programmes can be used as part of a leadership curriculum for young people to deliver to younger peers. They  are also designed to be fun, interactive, accessible and engaging for young people. We also offer a bespoke curriculum design service, allowing education providers to make careers an integral part of their provision. 

Our workshops can be tailored to suit your particular requirements covering topics from communication and CV writing to interview skills. Learners can build their confidence and develop their skills in order to prepare for further education, training or work readiness.

Our one-to-one career interviews are delivered by professionals who support  young people and adults to explore career, education and training pathways.  Group work can also be undertaken.  As an affiliate member of the Careers Development Institute, all of our practitioners follow the professional code of ethics. 

We take pride in our holistic approach in order to support the development of young people and famiies in achieving their career goals.                           
We provide One-to-One support & group work:
  • Parenting Support Programmes
  • Children's & Young People's Wellbeing & Resilience Programmes
  • Mental Heath & Resilence Training Courses
  • Adverse Childhood Experiences & Trauma Informed Practice Awareness Training for Parents/Carers & Professionals
  • Mantal Health & Wellbeing toolkits for Parents/Carers & Professionals
  • Family Support & Coaching
  • Parents & Carers Support Groups
  • Volunteering & Personal Development Opportunities
  • Family activities to develop well-being, social networking and reduce isolation
  • Wraparound family support
Community Supporters

 We have a growing database of regional community partners who can offer young people an introduction to the world of work by providing volunteering opportunities, visiting speakers and mentors.

Our business and community support network, includes qualified teachers, social workers, recruitment consultants, careers professionals,  business managers and graduate consultants provide a range of support by offering workshop design input, creating/ reviewing our materials and processes,and offering additional services from event speakers and voluntary work placements to prize donations.

This provides quality assurance of our materials, real business relevance and ensures a professional delivery of services.

We aim to...
  • Build confidence, well-being and resilience in young people and their families
  • Work to promote employability and enterprise skills 
  • Supports parents/carers and others to support the development of well-being and resilience in young people
  • Encourage peer learning and mentoring, participation, engagement and community volunteering
  • Promote interests and activities to develop social networking
  • Promote business and community support and to bring employers and young people together
  • Provide high quality 1:1 careers guidance delivered by qualified careers professionals
For more information about the variety of roles that Community Partners can play and how we can support them, please see our Get Involved page.
The increase in mental health issues amongst children, young people and adults continues to increase. According to leading charity MIND  (extract below):
  • The amount of people with common mental health problems went up by 20% between 1993 to 2014, in both men and women [2].
  • The percentage of people reporting severe mental health symptoms in any given week rose from 7% in 1993, to over 9% in 2014 [2].
  • The number of young women reporting common mental health problems has been going up
Suicide and self-harm on the riseOverall reported suicide numbers have also gone up in England and Wales since 2018. They had been going down before that. 
This is partly because in 2018 the rules changed around recording causes of death. So more deaths are now being recorded as suicide, whereas before they might have been recorded as something else. 
But there has still been a clear increase in the number of men and the number of people under 25 taking their own life since 2018 [4].
We also know that:

  • ​People reporting self-harm went up by 62% between the years 2000–2014 (that means it more than doubled) [2].
  • People reporting having had suicidal thoughts within the past year went up by 30% between the years 2000–2014 [2].
  • The number of people who self-harm or have suicidal thoughts is rising faster than the number of people experiencing mental health problems overall [2].
This might mean that people are finding it harder to cope with mental health problems.

Furthermore, research shows that physical, mental, educational, social and economic outcomes a detrimentally impacted by oAdverse Chidlhood Experiences, trauma and toxic stress. However, applying a trauma informed approach, psycho-social education and implementation of resilience building strategies can greatly mitigate against these negative outcomes.

Our Family Education, Mental Health Awareness training and support provide opportunities for children, young people and families to understand the impact of stress, techniques to improve it's management, resilience building strategies and develop their self-awareness, self-esteem and confidence. This enables and empowers them to improve their mental health and wellbeing and acheive more positive outcomes. 

Our implementation of trauma informed, non-judgemental, systemic approach in our engagement with families, means that they are able to create real change and remain supported to maintain this over time.

Additionally ,the Education Act (2011) removed the statutory provision of careers guidance from the LEA and placed the responsibility on schools to provide'independent and impartial careers guidance.' 

The Wolf Report (2011) reflected on the state of vocational training and estimated:  'at least 350,000 young people in a given 16-19 cohort are poorly served by current arrangements. Their programmes and experiences fail to promote progression into either stable, paid employment or higher level education and training in a consistent or an effective way .'The Ofsted Review (2013) 'Going in the right direction? Careers Guidance in schools from September 2012,' included recommendations for schools to improve the quality and delivery of impartial careers guidance: 
  • to develop  and implement a clear strategy for careers guidance and ensure that they make good use of the National Careers Service resources,
    well-trained staff, careers guidance professionals, employer networks, and local colleges and other providers to ensure that students are well
    supported in making decisions about their career pathways   
  • to promote the wider range of progression routes available at further education colleges, independent learning providers, and communities and skills providers
The Review also stated that inspectors should take greater account of the quality of careers guidance and of students’ destinations in judging the effectiveness of a school’s leadership and management. 

Furthermore, the business community are unhappy at the lack of  'soft skills'  displayed by young people. According to a report in The Telegraph (14th August 2013),  The British Chamber of Commerce said that many employers had been left disheartened and frustrated by poor levels of literacy, numeracy, communication and timekeeping among school leavers and graduates. John Longworth, director general of the BCC, called on schools to provide more careers guidance, work experience placements and visits to local employers. He said, 'The government must stop fixating on exam results alone, and ensure that soft workplace skills are taught in our schools, or young people will continue to be left out in the cold.' 

With high levels of youth unemployment and employers concerns, Crea8ing Careers offers innovative and cost effective ways to support schools and organisations to meet the needs of young people  in an era of legislative changes and diminishing public funds.      

The combination of mental health and resilience support/education in conjuction with employability skills provides  children, young people and their families the best opportunity to improve their health , wellbeing and gives  them the tools needed to build their foundations for the future.                                                                                                                  
Registrar of Companies for England and Wales: Crea8ing Careers CIC. Company Reg. No. 8700217
Copyright © Crea8ing Careers 2013-2018  Kent, United Kingdom. Designed: K.Akwei © 2013