Alexander* is a true Wood Grove success story. From an angry and emotionally unsettled young man to someone able to regulate his emotions, accept help and with a wide group of friends – his journey has been nothing short of incredible. Preparing for independence and his next steps, he should be rightly proud of how far he has come.

The change has not come easily or quickly but the rewards for Alexander and his family are clear to see. The team at Wood Grove, a residential children’s home in Colchester, have supported him to gain the tools he needed to regulate and understand why he sometimes feels the way he does – and to have a better ability to manage those emotions.

This ability to self-regulate has seen Alexander able to enjoy a much fuller and more settled life. Having had excellent school attendance, he now attends college and, with the help of the team, has built stronger relationships with his wider family which did not exist before. He stays regularly with his family and he is growing in independence.

The team say they have simply helped him develop his ‘tool kit’ to help him cope with the challenges day-to-day life might present. He has, they say, ‘come a very long way’.