Miguel’s story: Don’t be shy to ask for help if you need it

Making a home with Centrepoint

Miguel, 20, first arrived in the UK during 2020 at the age of 15 as an unaccompanied minor. He was placed into care, where he stayed until he was 18. It was then that his care home let him know that unfortunately he had aged out of the support and he would need to move on to another accommodation. However, he didn’t know where to move to. Thankfully, his local authority supported his referral to Centrepoint, where he has been living for the last two years.

“I was in a house before which was for young people because I was in care, but after that when I turned 18, I came to Centrepoint. And since then, I’ve stayed here.

“At first, I wasn’t totally sure, I mean I wasn’t sure it was a place for me you know. I didn’t know what it was going to be, I thought maybe it was going to be like other private houses where you wouldn’t interact with your neighbours, or it might be like a landlord. But in here it’s quite different. It’s the right place for young people.”

Whilst living in his new home, he can see the support and guidance offered to each young person makes where he is now living the right place, as he looks to take those steps towards living independently. 

“I’ve been living at Centrepoint for two years now and it’s been good – I haven’t had any problems. All the staff are good and they’re really supportive with me staying here.”

Getting the right support

When Miguel arrived at Centrepoint, he was paired with a key worker who’s there to support with any questions he might have, help him to develop new skills and be a source of guidance. Miguel and his key worker Shab have developed a close relationship whilst working together and during their sessions, when talking about the kind of advice and guidance he could benefit from. After reflecting on his experiences, they discussed the possibility of Miguel working with a Centrepoint Psychotherapist. 

After making a referral to the team, Miguel has been working with Stephen, a psychotherapist, for around two years and says he can feel that he’s made a lot of positive progress with how he has been feeling. 

Alongside working closely with his Psychotherapist, he was also referred to Centrepoint’s Jobs and Education team; to begin to identify any skills and areas he would like to develop to help him into the working world. He’s been working closely with both Asif and Sarah, jobs and education advisors, to look for potential avenues for his future career and take on different training opportunities.

“I did get in touch with one of the Psychotherapists from Centrepoint and also one of the job advisors, his name is Asif and he’s in employment. So, it has really helped to talk to him as well. He’s helped with future opportunities and with full-time jobs.”

“With the Psychotherapist, it’s been going alright. I think I’m making a lot of progress compared to how I was before. And Asif is really helpful as well.”

Miguel had an interest in working in customer service to begin with, looking for jobs in cleaning or catering where he can gain some experience to help him to reach his real passion, which is to become a chef. As someone who loves all cuisines, and going out for food with friends, he is excited about the possibility of this being something he could pursue in the future.

“For work, I would say it’s mostly in customer service side but also maybe in the long-term thinking I would say I would like to be a cook. So that’s kind of the goal for what I’m doing right now. But for the jobs at the moment, they would be related to cleaning or catering and things like that.”

He’s taking the time he needs to work out what he wants to do and the steps he needs to take to get there, making sure to gain valuable experience whenever he can to help him to reach his goals, whilst also taking the time he needs to make sure he feels good within himself.

“I’m working it all out right now – I’m just kind of getting experience for these jobs because if I want to get into that place, first I need some experience. That’s kind of my goal right now to get into those roles.”

Looking back on his experiences

After not knowing what to expect when he arrived, to now feeling settled and making valuable connections with other young people and teams around Centrepoint, Miguel took a moment to reflect on his time living at the supported home and what he has been able to do and experience. The mixture of being able to take part in different events and activities and gain experience in different roles and training opportunities has been an important part of his journey with Centrepoint.

“Here at Centrepoint it’s been really nice to be here. There are always new opportunities here for jobs or to spend time with other young people, which is nice for me. A few minutes ago, we were talking about going on a trip on Saturday and they were asking me if that would be of interest. So of course, I said yes, and it felt nice and that we are kind of important to them as well. You know that they really care about us, especially enough to do this kind of stuff.”

“They usually do some trips during the winter months, for example, one of my favourite ones that I attended with them was to Winter Wonderland. We did ice skating and all the rides and all that. It was really fun, and I liked it.”

Miguel has also been grateful for the relationship he has developed with Shab whilst living with Centrepoint, knowing that he’s someone that he can always reach out to if he has any worries or needs some support with something in particular, such as applications.

“I’ve been working with Shab and he’s really nice. He’s always helping me and whenever I’m doing things, for example, he always asks a few days later how stuff was. He’s very supportive.”

“He’s helped me a lot. Maybe when I was first here, in those first months and everything from then on, he’s always been helping me, for example filling out applications or with a driving licence and things like that. He’s always been there helping me.”

He's now preparing to move into his own flat, and taking all of the steps he needs to feel confident in living independently. We are so proud of the progress and steps that Miguel has taken to get the support he needs to reach his future goals and can’t wait to hear all about his dream of becoming a chef.