I was feeling isolated and my home life was difficult. I was in foster care after a lot of moving around. When I was with my real family I was not being very respectful to my community, getting mixed up in vandalism and anti-social behaviour. My attendance at school wasn’t good either, as I just wasn’t enjoying it.

My social worker was concerned about me as I was just sitting in my room, being a bit of a couch potato, and never going out.

She wanted me to be more active, so she told me about Extern and how to get involved. I had heard of Extern before, but didn’t know that much about it.

When I started with Extern I met other people in the group, and one of the first things I was asked was about what I like to do. I usually don’t like going into groups, I prefer dealing with people more on a one-to-one basis, so my Extern keyworker and I focused on that.

I’m a lot more confident since working with Extern. I’m doing well at school too - my attendance is high, I’m giving my best in what I do, and I’m handing in my homework on time. My favourite subjects are ICT, technology, and maths, and this year I’m doing well in lots of my subjects.

Conor, (14), LAC Mentoring