Evidence of our work in action
Stories about brighter outcomes for children, young people and their families in Reading
Stories bring activity to life.
This page tells you how Brighter Futures for Children’s (BFfC) staff have had a positive impact on children, young people and their families in Reading.
Every story demonstrates our values in action: Honest, creative, caring, respectful, responsible and quality-driven.
Families came together at Pinecroft Shared Care Service to celebrate the successful transition of seven young people into the new style provision in August 2022. The celebrations included outdoor games, a BBQ lunch and an achievement ceremony where all the young people received a personalised medal and certificate. One parent said they had talked to others and they all agreed they could not imagine how any other provision could get anywhere near as good as Pinecroft.
Demonstrating our values:
Creative, caring and quality-driven
A representative from the Department for Education visited the town to look at Reading’s cultural partnership provision and gave excellent feedback about BFfC’s Holiday Activity and Food (HAF) scheme.
They said all the clubs were creating life-long memories for all the children attending, thanks to the hard work of the HAF team at BFfC and the leaders, volunteers, and staff at each of the clubs.
Demonstrating our values:
Quality-driven, responsible and creative
A carer told us about two young girls who were made to feel valued and enjoyed a massive boost to their self-esteem by attending short break sessions with Reading Football Club. She said how valued the all-inclusive activities were for children who struggle in mainstream settings. She added that there was no competition children could come last in, just equal fun activities making them feel great, especially about themselves.
Demonstrating our values:
Respectful and caring
A Reading mother was overjoyed when her teenage son, who has additional needs, joined her in their garden this summer. A small feat? No, a giant one. It was the first time since they moved into their house 12 years ago. The mum sobbed with joy as they had lunch together in the garden and she described it as one of the happiest moments of her life. She believes the change in her son was down to the positive impact the new tranquil garden at our children’s home, Pinecroft, had on him during his visits to us.
Demonstrating our values: Creative and caring
BFfC’s Elevate careers service began working with a teenager who hadn’t been in employment, education or training for some time. Our careers coach was patient, listened, gained his trust and started to share details about apprenticeships. She never gave up and continued to send him opportunities in the areas he was interested in. He went on to secure a position with an engineering firm in Berkshire.
Demonstrating our values: Respectful and quality-driven
A college student with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) and autism wrote into the school transport team at BFfC to thank them and the taxi firm they use for being so supportive and providing help when they were feeling anxious and overwhelmed. They said they would never have been able to finish their college course and start working without their help.
Demonstrating our values: Respectful, caring and responsible
Daily life was a struggle for a Reading family with two children diagnosed with autism but their lives have been transformed after attending the BFfC Living with Autism course.
The father found that he was able to understand his young son so much more easily and reflect on what day-to-day life is like for his children. He said he felt grateful for the opportunity to attend the course and now feels heard and less isolated, knowing other families are experiencing similar struggles.
The course also helped to embed the strategies the Portage team and nursery have suggested. The parents also shared that their other, non-verbal child had put two words together for the first time. She said “love you” to her mother.
Demonstrating our values:
Caring and quality-driven
Several of our teams supported a family who had two young children with complex special educational needs. The BFfC Portage team supported the parents to play and interact with their children at home while our Early Years SEND advisors worked hard to find two appropriate settings for the children to attend.
Portage continues to support the family at home and both settings are providing high quality SEND support for the children.
Demonstrating our values:
Quality-driven, responsible and caring
A member of BFfC’s Occupational Therapy team was thanked by a mum for helping guide her through the Disabled Facilities Grant process. She commented that BFfC has a very bright future if her experience was an indication of the company’s social care practices going forward.
Demonstrating our values:
Caring, creative and quality-driven
Members of our Early Years team have been providing extra support to two-year-olds in Reading to help them regain months of missed social and educational opportunities due to the pandemic.
Their aim is to understand the impact of COVID on this age group and work with practitioners to enhance two-year-old provision. The team has provided support to 33 early years settings so far and childminders and have already received reports of increased confidence among the young children.
Demonstrating our values:
Caring and quality-driven
A Lego club at Cressingham Short Break Service has proved to be a big hit with children since starting in the spring 2022.
The club was launched to help stimulate children’s imagination by providing them with various Lego pieces and setting them a theme. The young people have loved it and not only have they successfully built amazing objects for each theme, they have created a whole world and story around each one.
Demonstrating our values:
Creative and caring.
Sunnyside nursery at Sun Street Children’s Centre, in east Reading, has been offering 15 hours of childcare for children eligible for two-year-old funding since opening in May 2022.
The team has enjoyed great success but one of the most significant has been a huge improvement in communication skills among the young children.
Those starting in May were born during the COVID-19 pandemic which affected their communication skills. In the space of four months the children had learned to communicate well, learning new words and expressions.
Demonstrating our values:
Creative, caring and quality-driven