Dante’s Story
Dante is the kind of person who takes action to change his circumstances. So just before Christmas 2023, the 15-year-old asked social workers if he could be moved into foster care due to unresolvable problems at home.
After his first night in foster care, Dante told Railway Children worker Amelia* that he’d spent the whole night with his curtains open. Such was the novelty of having a window to look out of.
Over the next four months, juggling different foster carers, moving schools and huge emotional strain, Dante continued to study for his GCSEs, and passed. He then found two college open days he wanted to attend, applied for an apprenticeship and got it!
A self-starter
“He’s really settled and is achieving so much,” says Amelia. “This is a young person who, a year ago, was too cold and tired to get out of bed – just making it to school felt impossible. Today, he is holding down his apprenticeship, attending college and has recently begun looking into living independently.
“Dante has been such a big part of his own progress, he doesn’t need me anymore,” says Amelia, “and that’s the aim. I’ll miss him, but Dante now has the skills, the resilience and the confidence to go out and do it himself, and he knows I’m always here if he needs me.”
