Bonnie, aged 15, was late to bloom on the autism spectrum, with her difficulties not fully coming to light until almost two years into secondary school.
Her mother, Viki, explains what a difficult time that period was for Bonnie:
“Socially and emotionally, Bonnie was facing challenges which the school just couldn’t cope with. Up until then, she’d managed to mask many of the traits of autism and so there had been no diagnosis. But she was finding it increasingly more difficult to control her own behaviour and would sometimes blow up in class when it all got too much. There were multiple exclusions. It felt as if she had been labelled a ‘bad child.’”
Bonnie found a welcome escape when a school friend introduced her to YMCA East Surrey’s Beatz music project. Beatz, a music-making and recording project for young people aged 11-18, offers young people an outlet to express their creative minds by performing or producing music.
“I was bored after school and I play a bit of guitar, so I went to a session,” says Bonnie. “It was good to have something to do. I realised I knew some of the other people there from school and I started splitting my time between the music sessions and the youth club. The staff are easy to talk to and joke around with. And I like being able to meet up with my mates outside of school.”
YMCA East Surrey’s Youth Clubs are funded by the National Lottery Community Fund and operate in Horley, Merstham, Redhill, Reigate and Tadworth. They are free for young people in school years 6 to 11.
“At youth club, the young people are allowed to be who they are and the calm environment means no explosions from Bonnie,” says Viki. “She used to keep school troubles to herself because she didn’t want to burden us with more worries, but she found it easier to open up to the youth workers. They were great at helping break down her problems into smaller parts and made sure to keep me in the loop.”
“They spotted and recognized traits of autism in Bonnie and kept me grounded during all of our school troubles. Fighting for support is exhausting. The YMCA team provided relief for me while I struggled for the backup Bonnie needed.”
When Bonnie was offered a place on a YMCA East Surrey youth excursion to Snowdon, her mother was thrilled.
“There have been times when Bonnie was excluded from school trips either due to her behaviour or a lack of adequate support,” says Viki, “but the YMCA youth workers made nothing of it at all. They just said she would be fine and they knew how to get in touch with me if they needed to. And I couldn’t believe it was free!”
That first trip didn’t run completely smoothly and Bonnie became upset in the minibus on the way to Wales, anxious about leaving her family. However, through talking to youth workers, she managed the first night, went on to successfully climb Snowdon, and was an active member of the group. This summer, she successfully joined our residential to Scafell Pike and, on a third trip, when another young person struggled with homesickness, Bonnie took them under her wing.
“She came back from each trip on a high,” says Viki. “Her confidence has grown enormously. It’s overspilled into her daily life. She’s forging stronger friendships and, because Bonnie will open up to the youth workers if she has issues, problems are nipped in the bud far quicker.”
“They never gave up on her. Without their support, she’d be in a far darker place. Instead, she’s settled happily into a new school and the youth club is her safe space.”