Winta
When Winta first entered the system, she was treated as an adult because she did not have documentation to prove her age. While waiting for her age to be verified, she was placed in shared accommodation with another adult, despite being a child. Once her age dispute was resolved and she was officially recognized as a child, she was moved into shared accommodation with over a dozen young people. While she enjoyed the social environment, the constant turnover of staff made it difficult to feel settled. After a year, that home closed, and she had to move again. From the start, Winta was determined to continue her education. But her first social worker did not support her with school applications or pass on her requests. She only received help after finding a solicitor, which led to her getting a new social worker who supported her goals. Winta feels lucky that she had a good level of English, without it, she believes things would have been harder.
Winta came to the UK in her late teens, as an asylum seeker from East Africa. She is preparing to leave the care system and go to university.
More about me...
I’m preparing to go to university but feel stuck between systems. The gap between leaving care and starting uni is long enough to lose housing support, but too short to get help from support services. It’s stressful trying to figure out where I’ll live.
Even though I wasn’t given much guidance, I’ve worked hard to create my own opportunities. I taught myself how to cook, volunteer at local youth groups, and stay connected with people who can help with my future plans. I want other care leavers – especially those with refugee backgrounds – to know that they can be proud of who they are. Being care-experienced isn’t something to hide; it’s part of our strength.
Winta said she was left without the things she needed as her social worker was not passing on information.
Winta said she was left without the things she needed as her social worker was not passing on information.
I think the council would have been willing to help me. I think the problem was generally just my social worker ’cause he was not relaying my—
The first one?
Yeah.
OK.
I think he was just not relaying my messages, like my requests, which is why I did not get the things I wanted, or needed. But I think it would have been really helpful for me to at least try and get to sixth form instead of college and do A levels. But... yeah.
So... but yeah, sort of like... sort of just that. And when I complained about him, it took quite a while to change my social worker, yeah.
So how long until you were able to get the new one?
So, there’s someone called the Independent Reviewing Officer, the IRO, they usually come during child care review and they gave me their email address and said if there’s anything you need to talk about, like your social worker, or whatever, you can contact us. So, I sent them an email and it was like... like the moment I realised that things are not going well, and I’d love to get more support, I contacted them. I never got any reply to that email.
I don’t think anyone sits you down and tells you that: “Oh, this is what your rights are and this is what you can get.” I found out about the services the local council is supposed to provide through a different organisation. So, I was just volunteering and they said, “Which local council are you with?” and I was like: “[City],” and they told me there’s a website called... I forgot its name, there’s a website that lists all the services that every local council is supposed to provide. So that’s how I found out things, the things that I can ask for, my rights and things so.
Winta was sent to the Home Office alone and placed in a hotel room with an adult for eight months until her birth certificate arrived proving she was a child.
Winta was sent to the Home Office alone and placed in a hotel room with an adult for eight months until her birth certificate arrived proving she was a child.
I was put in a foster family for like two weeks. I was an asylum seeker at the time, and I didn’t really have documents proving my identity or my age. So, the [City 1] Council, the local council decided that since I did not have anything to prove my age, I was not a child, so they got me a ticket to [City 2] from [City 1] and said, “You need to go to [City 2], go to the Home Office and seek asylum from there, not from here,” so I had to leave. I was on my own and I was new to the country, that was like... and that was... yeah... So, I ended up going to the Home Office to seek asylum and it was a whole process. They had to do a lot of things, like get in touch with the [City 1] Council asking them: it’s not been proved what her age is, it’s all we’ve got is what she says, but you’ve sent her here alone, ’cause that’s not right. The [City 1] Council didn’t really care about it much. So that was a really horrifying experience. But yeah, once I got to [City 2], I decided to seek asylum from there. I was put in a hotel with an adult for eight months, so I stayed in [City 2] for eight months. I got a solicitor in the meantime and he was dealing with my age dispute, like getting in contact with [City 1] Council, and stuff, and after eight months, they finally managed to get my birth certificate from back home, and yeah, that’s how they proved I was indeed a child and decided to take me back to [City 1].
Winta faced leaving her supported accommodation at 18 and moving to the YMCA for almost a year before starting university.
Winta faced leaving her supported accommodation at 18 and moving to the YMCA for almost a year before starting university.
Yeah. They said they have to talk to my... to the company, to the organisation that I am currently staying with, like the placement, to see if they will allow me to stay at least for three months more after turning 18. So, they said they’re still waiting to hear from them, but if that doesn’t work out, I will be placed in YMCA. So, it’s like a temporary placement for people, for young people that are 18 and above, I believe.
OK.
So, I’ll be placed in the YMCA if things don’t work out with my current accommodation, and after that, I will be moving to uni, and from there... yeah.
OK. So, if you stayed in your current accommodation, that would be like three months, or something like that. So how long would they put you into the YMCA?
If I don’t get to stay for three months in my current accommodation, then I would have to move immediately to a YMCA until I move for uni.
Oh, OK.
Yeah.
OK. And then when is the uni plan, when are you...?
So, September next year.
OK.
Yeah.
So, you would be in the YMCA from like now—
From now, yeah.
—to next September?
Yeah.
Winta, an asylum seeker, was placed with a foster carer for two weeks before being moved to a shared hotel room because she couldn’t prove her age. She later proved she was a child, after living with another adult for eight months.
Winta, an asylum seeker, was placed with a foster carer for two weeks before being moved to a shared hotel room because she couldn’t prove her age. She later proved she was a child, after living with another adult for eight months.
I was put in a foster family for two weeks. I was an asylum seeker at the time, and I didn’t really have documents proving my identity or my age. So, the [City 1] local council decided that since I did not have anything to prove my age, I was not a child, so they got me a ticket to [City 2] from [City 1] and said, “You need to go to [City 2], go to the Home Office and seek asylum from there, not from here,” so I had to leave. I was on my own and I was new to the country, that was like... and that was... yeah... So, I ended up going to the Home Office to seek asylum and it was a whole process. They had to do a lot of things, like get in touch with the [City 1] Council asking them: it’s not been proved that... what her age is, it’s all we’ve got is what she says, but you’ve sent her here alone, ’cause that’s not right. The [City 1] Council didn’t really care about it much. So, that was a really horrifying experience. But yeah, once I got to [City 2], I decided to seek asylum from there. I was put in a hotel with an adult for eight months, so I stayed in [City 2] for eight months. I got a solicitor in the meantime and he was dealing with my age dispute, like getting in contact with [City 1] Council, and stuff. And after eight months, they finally managed to get my birth certificate from back home, and yeah, that’s how they proved I was indeed a child and decided to take me back to [City 1].
Winta had to keep asking for help, and after being out of education for eight months she asked her social worker to help her apply to sixth form so she could study medicine but was told it was impossible.
Winta had to keep asking for help, and after being out of education for eight months she asked her social worker to help her apply to sixth form so she could study medicine but was told it was impossible.
So, I got a social worker when I moved there. It wasn’t the best experience either. My first social worker was very... it was sort of like he was not interested in the job. I had to ask for things like a thousand times before I got them.
A lot of times it was things I really needed, things like college. I was already out of education for eight months ’cause I was in [City], and when I went back to [City], I wanted to do sixth form, ’cause I’ve always wanted to do medicine and going the college route is not really the best.
OK.
So, I tried to apply for sixth form. Asked him for help, but he was not... yeah, he was not the best. He said it was impossible to do it. And now after going to college and meeting people, I’ve realised it wasn’t impossible. But... yeah.
Winta’s new social worker and the virtual school supported her ambition to study medicine by funding UCAT practice and helping her attend university open days.
Winta’s new social worker and the virtual school supported her ambition to study medicine by funding UCAT practice and helping her attend university open days.
So, after my first social worker, I asked for a change of social workers, so I got a new social worker and she’s really good. She’s really supportive. When she found out I wanted to do medicine and she realised how hard it is, she got me a lot of support. So there’s something called Virtual School, so they helped pay for my UCAT practice. They helped me book my UCAT test ’cause the UCAT is part of the process. I think they made it a lot easier for me, and they know a lot more than I do. They helped me go to open days. They booked my tickets and... yeah, so it wasn’t very hard to go through the process. I’m a bit nervous still, but... yeah.
Winta felt supported by her new social worker, who helped her prepare to study medicine by finding funding to pay for practice exams and attend open days.
Winta felt supported by her new social worker, who helped her prepare to study medicine by finding funding to pay for practice exams and attend open days.
So, after my first social worker, I asked for a change of social workers, so I got a new social worker and she’s really good. She’s really supportive. When she found out I wanted to do medicine and she realised how hard it is, she got me a lot of support. So, there’s something called Virtual School, they helped pay for my UCAT practice. They helped me book my UCAT test ’cause the UCAT is part of the process. So, I think they made it a lot easier for me, and they know a lot more than I do. They helped me like go to open days. They booked my tickets and... yeah, so it wasn’t very hard to go through the process. I’m a bit nervous still, but... yeah.
Winta applied for benefits with the help of her PA.
Winta applied for benefits with the help of her PA.
So, I just submitted my application yesterday with my PA. So, I don’t know how it works or how much it will be, but she said it would be different. So, the council stops sending me the money that they’re sending me after five more payments now, and then, yeah, I’ll be transferred onto benefits.
Oh, OK.
Yeah, until I get a job, I believe.
Winta felt young people needed a trusted adult with them at interviews, especially when faced with legal questions and language barriers.
Winta felt young people needed a trusted adult with them at interviews, especially when faced with legal questions and language barriers.
I think it would be really helpful to have an adult present with them that they know and that they can trust, ’cause I think there’s a lot of legal questions that you get and it’s really frustrating when you can’t really answer them and there’s no one really to ask.
Winta found being in limbo hard at first, but she started volunteering to help keep herself distracted.
Winta found being in limbo hard at first, but she started volunteering to help keep herself distracted.
At first, yes. When I was still in [City] ’cause I thought that... or like if I had my status, things would be different, but then I got to meet more people and I got to meet more organisations. and after asking around, I realised that it doesn’t really make much of a difference. I mean, it’s... it’s good to have it, but even without it, you can do a lot of things. So I got busy with other things: I started doing a lot of volunteering when I was in [City] and that sort of kept my mind out of thinking about it.
Winta said she was sent to the Home Office alone after the council refused to believe she was a child, and even the Home Office felt this was wrong.
Winta said she was sent to the Home Office alone after the council refused to believe she was a child, and even the Home Office felt this was wrong.
I was put in a foster family for like two weeks. I was an asylum seeker at the time, and I didn’t really have documents proving my identity or my age. So the [City 1] Council, the local council decided that since I did not have anything to prove my age, I was not a child, so they got me a ticket to [City 2] from [City 1] and said, “You need to go to [City 2], go to the Home Office and seek asylum from there, not from here,” so I had to leave. I was on my own and I was new to the country, that was like... and that was... yeah... So I ended up going to the Home Office to seek asylum and it was a whole process. They had to do a lot of things, like get in touch with the [City 1] Council asking them: it’s not been proved that what her age is, it’s all... all we’ve got is what she says, but you’ve sent her here alone, ’cause that’s not right. The [City 1] Council didn’t really care about it much. So that was a really horrifying experience.
Winta explained that her solicitor helped her obtain her birth certificate to confirm her age, and said she could always reach out if she needed more support.
Winta explained that her solicitor helped her obtain her birth certificate to confirm her age, and said she could always reach out if she needed more support.
But yeah, once I got to [City 2], I decided to seek asylum from there. I was put in a hotel with an adult for eight months, so I stayed in [City 2] for eight months. I got a solicitor in the... in the meantime and he was dealing with my age dispute, talk... like getting in contact with [City 1] Council, and stuff, and after eight months, they finally managed to get my birth certificate from back home, and yeah, that’s how they proved I was indeed a child and decided to take me back to [City 1].
But before moving away from [City 2], moving back from [City 2], I had a solicitor that was dealing with my age dispute, and there was like... after he finished with my case, he said, “You can still contact my colleagues if you need anything,” so I had their contact details. So when I told them that: “Oh, I want to change my social worker and it’s really not working,” that was like three months after I first complained to the IRO, and that’s when they started pushing for it with the... with the local council themselves.
Winta explained that the charity clubs helped her build routine, simplify tasks, and feel cared for.
Winta explained that the charity clubs helped her build routine, simplify tasks, and feel cared for.
I wish they could support more people. They’re really good. From like the first day that I met them, it’s always been them trying to create sort of like a structure to my life and simplify things that I need to do. So, I don’t know how to put it in words, but they’ve been really supportive.
Uh-huh.
Even after moving out of [City], they still stay in touch and ask: “How are things going? Is there anything we can help with?” and that means a lot. It’s really helpful. I think it’s also really good how they deal with young people in their organisation. That they understand that there’s a lot going on in their lives, so they try not to centre the... like the activities around that. A lot of other organisations do that, like when you go there it’s all about like: ‘oh, you’re an asylum seeker, or you’re a care leaver, you’re this and that,’ but there it’s just like... they just accept you for being you, and I think that’s really good.