Testimonials
My name is Lynn Shilling and I work as a Post Adoption Support Social Worker. I hold a Psychology BSc. Hons degree and a Masters Degree in Social Work.
I have worked with Joy over the last three years delivering a support programme for adoptive parents and I am aware that she also provides training for prospective adopters.
The support programme for adoptive parents has received some very positive feedback. Whilst it is an evidence based programme, the support, advice and lived experience that Joy brings to the programme is invaluable. This helps the programme to be delivered ‘with’ adopters rather than ‘to’ them.
Joy has experience working as a Peer Mentor for adopters which is a service that helps adoptive parents to access support when their own support networks struggle to understand the complex needs of an adopted child. Joy’s experience as an adoptive parent and her training as a Peer Mentor helps parents to understand that there is a shared experience of adoption which reduces their feelings of isolation.
I have observed Joy to take a professional approach to her support and she brings a good understanding of the issues of adoption from everyday life issues to other areas such as education and special educational needs. Joy is able to connect easily with others as she is approachable, with good listening and communication skills.
I have recently worked with Joy offering support on a one to one basis with a family in crisis. Joy helped parents to clarify some of their biggest challenges and discussed strategies for parenting in a therapeutic approach. Although this was a very short intervention it helped the family through an extremely challenging period in their family life and they were incredibly thankful for the support given.
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Lynn Shilling, Post Adoption Social Worker, Hull
I have recently had some Education Advocacy sessions with Joy as my daughter is transitioning to Secondary school. She is adopted, has a trauma history & SEND. Joy helped me to get organised, gave me tips & strategies for meetings & communication with school, & provided me with the session notes that I could refer back to. I felt comfortable in the sessions, was heard & not judged. Knowing that Joy speaks from experience was a huge motivator for choosing her service. Thank you for getting me on track!”
Tracey, Business Owner/Director & Adoptive Mum
Joy’s coaching sessions were a revelation. They helped me to reflect on my past, present and future which gave me a better understanding of myself. Joy taught me useful techniques to deal with the challenges I face at work and in my home life. Under Joy’s guidance, I was able to reassess my work/life balance.
Coaching gave me clarity on the issues that were holding me back and focused my mind on finding ways forward. I learnt how to reframe my thoughts and attitudes and how to set achievable goals to deal with the demands of my various roles.
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Shaun, Project Manager & Adoptive Dad
I have worked with Joy in my role as Art Therapist to her children and as facilitator of a therapeutic parenting group she was part of. This involved various trainings, where Joy was incredibly positive, curious, interested, and reflective. She has gained invaluable experience from this and is able to share her progress with therapeutic parenting, challenges she faced and how she overcame them.
Her capacity to manage challenging situations whilst remaining calm and therapeutic is incredible. Joy is an asset to our group. I asked her to keep coming not because I think she needs to, but to support other parents. She can actively listen to parents share their struggles, be empathic, responding with kindness and giving them tools to use.
Her direct experience turns an abstract idea into something concrete that tired parents can hear. I have been able to ask for her support and directed some parents to her, so she could give specific advice in relation to educational needs for example.
Joy is able to offer clear, tried and tested, guidance. I think the role of mentor and coach is ideal for Joy and believe she will be an amazing source of support to a parent or carer in need of direction and help.
Samantha Stubbs, Art Therapist
I felt listened to straight away upon meeting Joy who is calm and welcoming. Joy is a good communicator and clearly explained her role as a coach and the expectation of me from the start, which helped and enabled the full potential of the coaching experience.It has helped me be more reflective. I am finding strategies to manage my stress and manage my responses to colleagues and friends thanks to the coaching sessions. Coaching was really good for me and helped me to stay focussed on what I can and cannot control in my workplace.
Setting achievable goals that were meaningful to me, worked well. Clear communication throughout and referring back to our goals kept me focussed. The coaching notes I received were useful and the amount of detail was good. Coaching helped me to think differently.
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Claire, Charity Worker.
My coaching sessions with Joy had a huge positive impact on my life. Joy was flexible, supporting, encouraging and helped me to gain real clarity on how I was feeling and the direction that I wanted to go in. I'd recommend Joy to anyone as it was such a fulfilling experience with an extremely kind and empathetic coach who was excellent at listening and focusing on my needs.
Rebecca, Administrative Manager.
I have to admit to being a bit sceptical about coaching at the outset and whether it would be worthwhile. But I was at a crossroads in my career, not knowing which direction to go in, and my scepticism soon turned into motivation, with Joy’s help. I found Joy to be approachable, knowledgeable and very skilful in guiding and facilitating our sessions. She supported me to meaningfully and purposefully reflect on my current situation, my past work (and life) experiences and, most importantly, what values were important to me in life. Very quickly, Joy’s friendly, empathetic and supportive approach gave me the trust to openly share key information to enable me to think in a more structured and proactive way not only about my career (my initial reason for coaching) but also more holistically about my overall health and well-being and the impact that each has on the other. Using Joy’s professional skills and knowledge combined with my own reflections, I was able, with Joy’s support, to gain some clarity and set realistic goals for myself that supported the achievement of a better work-life balance.
Joy used a broad range of approaches that were personalised to my own situation and did this well. This included providing me with some tools and resources for me to do my own work outside of the sessions, giving me some self-accountability and responsibility to work on my goals and job situation, but with professional guidance and facilitation. One key thing I learnt through my coaching journey with Joy was that it’s ok for goals to change along the way or no longer be appropriate as circumstances change. It’s the learning acquired along that journey about myself and what is important to me in life that has absolutely been key in setting me up for a better future. I can’t thank Joy enough and would highly recommend her to anyone who is feeling ‘stuck’ or ‘flailing’ with no clear direction.
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Jan, Personal Assistant