Phoebe was just 19 years old when she applied to help young people in care across Leicestershire through the Independent Visitor scheme. Now 23, Phoebe is speaking out on her experience of being one of the youngest volunteers in the scheme, and why she would recommend it to others.
I chose to become an Independent Visitor around four years ago when I was considering doing a social work degree. I wanted to do something relevant alongside the degree, and I thought the council scheme was perfect. Although I decided to go down a different career route, I was still passionate and excited about working within the social care service and helping young people, so I took the step to apply.
Over the last four years, I have worked with two different young people, and have been visiting the second person for the last 18 months. I empathise with the young people that come from an ‘untraditional’ family setup, which can be challenging in different ways. I hope that spending time with them gives them some normality and consistency which they may lack in other areas of their life due to no fault of their own.
Currently, me and my young person tend to go shopping, get our nails done and the occasional bowling or ‘Go Ape’ trip. I always give them the autonomy to choose what they would like us to do, so every visit is different. We love spending time with each other and, whilst I like to think I’ve supported my young person and have helped them learn new things, I think it’s safe to say I have equally learnt a lot and have a lot thank to my young person for.
Being an Independent Visitor is a great way of being able to give back to society in a flexible and fulfilling role. My young person is local to me, meaning picking up and dropping off, as well as doing activities around us, is always easy. I see my young person roughly every four weeks and it’s always great to hear about how they’re getting on in life, from their education to friendships, and everything else that you have to navigate in those already difficult teen years.
I absolutely love being an Independent Visitor, and I look forward to working with my young person for years to come. I think being a young Independent Visitor allows me to be more relatable to the young person, and puts me in a position where I can help with any issues they may be facing, or even just talk about general life that they may not be able to feel comfortable expressing elsewhere.
The support that we have as Independent Visitors is great, and I know my scheme coordinator is always on hand if needs be. However, equally, we have the freedom to work with our young person and go on days out how we see fit and to suit as each other’s schedules.”
Person:Phoebe, Independent Visitor
If you are interested in learning more about the Independent Visitor scheme, you can visit our website, or contact the Fostering Team by emailing fostering@leics.gov.uk or calling 0116 305 0505.