For those of you who know me I can often be found in my bedroom playing video games. But instead I have switched my controller for a pair of running shoes and am setting out to raise money for a charity close to my heart - please read to find out why this charity is important to me

Myself and siblings grew up surrounded by domestic abuse, many of my younger years living in fear. We were frightened of what might happen next and never wanted to be left alone with the perpetrator who was my younger siblings Dad. This is how it impacted one of my siblings - Their Primary school was worried as they never really wanted to go into school and would cling to our Mum everyday before school. By 2017 Sept things were very tough - they really starting to struggle with school more and became violent, often being kept in at playtime because the teachers were worried about them absconding - they often didn’t make it into school at all as they wouldn’t leave our Mum. One day in early October things got much worse, they were long term suspended from school because the school said they could no longer deal with their complex needs. As you can imagine for the child this wasn't the easiest, Age 10, not being in school & not leaving the house wasn’t ideal. They began seeing a lot of health care professionals which was of course very overwhelming. They often left them feeling more angry and upset and the professionals would tell my Mum, ‘we don’t know what to do with them, how do you manage?’ No one could connect with them.

Their mental health continued to deteriorate, they would cry themselves to sleep, not sleep or wake up at 5am when they did sleep. They were a very active child, strong, yet tiny. Before Christmas they had the police called out for them on at least 8 different occasions before everyone realised enough was enough and they needed immediate support. They were crying out for it. They were a much loved special child and sibling but they needed professional round the clock support at that point for all the trauma they had endured through their young years.

By the end of December they were starting to lose weight, their appetite was almost gone and they barely left the house. Our Mum was worried & didn’t know where to turn, services just said they didn’t know what to do.. Thankfully in the January we were provided with 2 great carers who came in daily to support them & keep our siblings & my Mum safe. By March they started eating more daily and were managing to eat their favourite meal - hot dogs. But everyone was still worried, they were not leaving the house and refusing to go to appointments which were vital to aid them. By April 2018 a decision was made to start looking for residential schools to support them, care for them & help them process their trauma. We finally knew they were going to get the help they needed.

The way that their mental health was affecting them was incredibly hard to watch. Its always tough to see someone so young go through something like that - to have anxiety which cripples you to the point you won’t leave the house and then to become so disregulated you can damage other people in a split second must be so frightening. In July 2018 they were given a place at a very special school for incredibly special kids who had had traumatic lives. They were given a place to live, a community where they belonged, a 24/7 support network which kept them safe & helped them to start to understand their trauma. Needing to live away from home was never going to be easy. Sometimes it was still hard to talk to them as they would often have bad days and sometimes I just wouldn’t hear anything at all about them.

The child who left the Mulberry bush after 2.5 years had begun their healing journey. On the day they arrived there our Mum was asked what she hoped they could do for them. She showed the staff a picture & said she wanted her child back. The work the Mulberry Bush did for my sibling & our family we will be forever grateful for. And for this reason I am running the Oxford Half Marathon on October 12th 2025.

Transforming troubled lives together  -

The Mulberry Bush is a charity that exists to support those troubled and traumatised as children.  We help them feel listened-to and understood.  We enable them to make positive change in order to live their best lives.

Transforming troubled lives through specialist therapeutic services

The Mulberry Bush School was established in 1948 in Standlake, near Witney & is a residential school for some of the most emotionally distressed and traumatised primary school-aged children. These children have experienced early trauma, neglect & abuse and have usually had numerous failed educational and home placements.

Nowadays, The Mulberry Bush is so much more than the School. Through Outreach & Training, research & the National Centre for Reflective Practice.