Dear families and friends of Family Futures,
Autumn is here, bringing much needed rain. It also brings Halloween and bonfire night. Many children love them but some can find these times scary or difficult, with loud noises bringing back old memories.
It has been an exciting time at Family Futures. We have launched our new website and rebrand, and we hope you’ll take some time tohave a look at www.familyfutures.co.uk We are open to any feedback if you’d like to let us know here. People we’ve spoken to are delighted by the much easier to navigate website and by the fantastic rebranding and website design by Cynthia and our Marketing team - Rosemary and Charlotte. I would like to thank everybody who contributed to this amazing achievement.
It was important to us to represent real families on our website while still safeguarding the privacy of the vulnerable children we support, so we decided to invite local families from the wider community to take part in a photoshoot day as models. The warmth and fun we had on the day with our Family Futures style of creative arts and activities shines through in the photos, as you'll see. Thank you to our wonderful photographer, Shannon, and all the families and team who took part on the day to make it so enjoyable. Our therapy centre building and website now both offer a calm and safe space to access when life feels overwhelming, where you can find the support and information you need.
Our new look also reflects how Family Futures has grown. We began by supporting care-experienced families, formed through adoption, kinship care and fostering. Over the years, we saw from our published research and clinical practice how much our approach also helps neurodivergent children, children with SEND (special educational needs and disabilities) and families facing very similar struggles. These might be sensory overwhelm, school difficulties, dysregulation or anxiety. Families were usually searching for support that looks at the whole child, not just a single label or difficulty.
Our new website makes clear that we welcome all families who are struggling. If you’re unsure where to begin, we offer a free discovery call with a therapist to discuss getting an assessment or the right support for your family. You’ll find information on funding options here too. For adoptive and special guardianship families, we are able to offer both ASGSF funded and privately funded assessments and support as we are an Ofsted registered provider.
We believe the right therapeutic support should be available to any child who needs it and our expanded services for neurodivergent children and any child who is struggling reflect these values. Do listen to our new podcast on neurodiversity Where do I begin? Navigating neurodiversity and support
We are also delighted to release a new video with our co-founder Alan Burnell in conversation with Dr Dan Hughes, co-founder of DDP (Dyadic Developmental Psychotherapy). They look back on nearly 30 years of collaboration and discuss how our therapy model is also very applicable to neurodivergent children. It was wonderful to welcome Dr Dan Hughes back to Family Futures this month to deliver DDP Level 1 training and share his insights with us all in the video. I hope you enjoy the conversation and share the important messages with your networks.
Conversations like this matter more than ever. These are very difficult times for children’s mental health in the UK. The government’s Prevalence Review published this month shows how mental health conditions among 16 to 24 year olds have risen from around one in six in 1993 to one in four in 2024. The review is clear that support should not depend on a diagnosis and we would agree. As members of the Children and Young People’s Mental Health Coalition and networks supporting adoptive and special guardianship families, we are committed to ensuring all children and young people get better support at the right time. Too many families are facing long waits and complex referral pathways before they can get any help. We welcome the government’s pledge to act in its forthcoming mental health strategy. Improvements are urgently needed for children to get the earlier support they need to thrive.
We are still fortunate to have our Geraldine Fund and our Crisis Fund, which enable us to provide urgent support by our specialist team when it is needed and to guarantee support for adoptive families in their first year. We are a small team, but we are passionate and committed to helping as many children and families as we can.
If you are struggling, please reach out to us. We are offering a free discovery call with a therapist who will discuss your situation and possible next steps.
With warmest regards,
Jay and the Family Futures team
Jay Vaughan MBE, CEO of Family Futures
