Through all of the losses we have suffered, The Samantha Sykes Foundation Trust is still in growth, and as we enter the end of an educational year and the start of a new one I see hope and achievement. The Samantha Sykes Foundation is the a bright light for me, it continues to grow and we continue to make such a positive difference in so many lives.  We continue to support and work with people at risk of, or victims of,  Child Sexual Exploitation.  In our work we also continue to help Care Leavers access further and higher education. The results we are seeing with the Care Leavers, in particular,  is extremely visible and has shown remarkable results.

We have this year one young lady, Sanna Mahmood who, as a care leaver, has overcome so much difficulty in her own life, she has no family or family support, but she is so strong. Sanna keeps telling us we are amazing,  but the truth is it is Sanna who is amazing, she is so determined and at some point I am sure she will share her experiences with others, who are in need of support,  which will certainly assure them they too can achieve.  This year Sanna surpassed  her own expectations and achieved a first in her Degree.  This year we have also had a young male care leaver , who we have supported for three years through university, this young man has just achieved a merit in his Masters. Both have had direct funding from The Samantha Sykes Foundation, and we are proud of them both.

Myself and my wife Julie were so proud when Sanna invited us to go and see Sanna at her graduation day in July.  When we arrived she told us how she had not slept through excitement,  and you could really see how excited she was.  It was a breath of fresh air to see her, she was like a child in a sweet shop, you can see her beaming in the video below.

An added positive to both of their achievements is both of these young people are now working in the care system, they are both in full time employment, both are helping even more young people.  That surely makes everyone who has supported us smile and feel proud.  The funding raised, to support them is just the start it has helped both of them gain employment, both of these people can now make a difference to so many others through their “day jobs”.

The people who are no longer with us,  from Sami & Kim in 2012 up to Beth in 2019 would be so proud of what this charity has achieved.  We, at The Samantha Sykes Foundation are all certain none of this could be done without such tremendous support from all of our sponsors and supporters.

On behalf of everyone at The Samantha Sykes Foundation Trust we all thank you all for that support.