Hi! I am Abbie and I recently joined the No5 staff team as the Projects Coordinator! I am delighted to be taking this next step in my career and to work were my passions lie.
I have had a long journey with my experience at No5, which started when I was 14 years old. This journey involves going from attending counselling, to becoming a Young Ambassador, then Lead Young Ambassador and then to where I am today!
In 2014 I attended counselling sessions at No5 due to a significant decline in my mental health and wellbeing. In the space of 7 years, I had witnessed 2 family breakdowns and faced bullying numerous times, alongside the many difficult transitions you go through from child to teenager. My counselling not only boosted my mental health and wellbeing, but also my confidence in myself and relationships with both my parents.
In 2016, I visited No5 as part of my NCS (National Citizenship Service) volunteer week and here learnt about the Young Ambassador Scheme. I felt such a strong urge to give back to No5 who had given me so much, so a month later I became a Young Ambassador at the age of 16.
After 2 years of being a young ambassador, I was offered the role of Lead Young Ambassador in 2018! I was overjoyed to be able to not only use my voice but also be the voice of all the Young Ambassadors at times and build strong relationships and connections with them all.
In my time as Young Ambassador and Lead Young Ambassador, I contributed through multiple actions:
- Delivering workshops on topics such as Mental Health, Social Media, and Body Image (in schools, for our corporate partners both face to face and virtually)
- Compered the Performing Arts Concert
- Fundraising which included taking part in the Dragon Boat Race, Santa Runs, and gaining funding for the No5 Colouring Book
- Being a voice of a young person in the local community (through blogs, newspaper features, radio and TV interviews, and on social media)
- Voiced my experience as a young person during COVID-19 in “The Impact of COVID-19 Report – The Voice of Young People”
For me, these achievements and work would not have been possible without the counselling I received when I was 14 and being given the space to shape my lived experience with mental health into something positive.
I am overjoyed to now be the Projects Coordinator at No5 and look forward to still giving a voice to young people whilst working somewhere that shaped me into the person I am today. My 14 year old self would not believe the person 20 year old Abbie is today, and that is one of the key things that motivates me in my work, especially as it involves a heavy focus on young people aged 11 and up.
