NEWS & EVENTS LIFESTYLE
Speak Out Magazine | AUTUMN 2020
Red Thistle Fa David Anderson
H
i, my name is David, I am a WC?S member and part of the National Representative Body – The Collective. Today I’d like to talk about success. Why? Because often it seems as if the words used to describe and talk about people who are or have experienced care are associated with negative connotations. Whilst it is right that we use words such as trauma to inform people of what is or has been experienced, there are too many positive stories that go untold. I firmly believe that we are more than the prevailing narrative. We all have it in us to enjoy success. Sometimes, we need support to get there, but always, always, it is the individual who makes it happen. Ultimately, it will be you who makes the choices to arrive at that success!
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W H O CA R E S? S COT LA N D
Sometimes, when you have been told that you are ‘problematic’, ‘difficult’, ‘can’t manage your behaviour’, you can take this on (sometimes even without thinking) and carry it into your teenage and adult life. I did. It took me some time (too long) to realise that I wasn’t that difficult kid I was told about and I was actually someone who could experience all the successes and failures of life just as anyone else could. We are not defined by others (or the words in any report). Once we understand what drives our behaviour, we can alter our actions to give us a better chance of realising our dreams and wishes. That doesn’t mean to say
it is easy or that you will always arrive at where you want to be, but it will certainly increase the chance that you will, and you’ll certainly feel better about yourself for trying. I have experience of being looked after at home, informal kinship care, private children’s homes, residential centres, secure care, homelessness, and prison. I have also worked in a homeless hostel, community and residential settings for young people experiencing care, as a social worker and taught social care students. The journey towards my successes has not always been easy, but it has certainly been worthwhile. The learning and personal development I have achieved is possible for everyone. I am 100% sure that each and every young person can go on to achieve success in whichever roles they inhabit if they are given the right support to see themselves as good, worthy, and capable individuals. Whatever it is, from roller-skating to writing, gardening to geometry,
