By Lindsay Woodward

Tuesday 23 March saw the one year anniversary of the lockdown in the UK - a National day of reflection thinking of those we've lost, giving thanks to our hero key workers, a personal reflection on how our lives have changed and what the future holds.  With the lockdown anniversary and the roadmap set out ahead for the 'reopening' of our country it's been a week of mixed emotions. Understanding and processing those feelings is important, and this article sums it up really well. 

By Natasha Sond, CFF Director and Mental Health & Court of Protection Solicitor

I remember representing an adolescent for the first time as a trainee solicitor. The client was only 14 years old but had a significant history of self-harming behaviours. These were not just superficial self-harming cuts – these were incidents such as throwing herself off a 3 storey car park. She was detained in a secure adolescent ward. I did not know her history or background when I went to see her for the first time – however, I prepared myself for a very traumatic story of significant abuse. My presumption was that this level of suicide attempt meant significant abuse of some kind. 

By Daisy Edwards, Student Psychological Wellbeing Practitioner

At the start of this year, I joined the core team at CFF as a student psychological wellbeing practitioner.

Before working with CFF, my sister took part in an ‘overcoming anxiety’ group. The difference it made to her was life changing and to this day, she still uses the techniques she learnt from the group. This motivated me to help others like my sister, so I decided to volunteer at CFF. I learnt so much as I was volunteering and found it so rewarding, that from then on I knew it was something I wanted to pursue a career in. I then became a sessional worker; I helped deliver the workshops, and met with the families on home visits. I got to see more of the amazing work CFF do and met some wonderful families. 

The pandemic has been a time for reflection for many people. In this week’s blog, Sandhya Keshav, CFF’s Senior Finance Officer, has been reflecting back on her 18 years at CFF. 

I first set foot in CFF as a volunteer towards the end of 2002, taking on a variety of admin tasks such as making up booklets and data entry. I took on a paid role in the team in 2003 and went on to learn the finance role, including Sage and payroll systems, completing the AAT accounting qualification shortly after.

When people ask me what I enjoy most about working at CFF I always say it’s the people there.  In the last 18 years I’ve worked with so many amazing people. I still remember each and every one of them - I’ve learnt so many different skills from them and I wish them all well.  CFF has sort of become my second home and the people working there are like a family.

I love the variety that comes with working for a small charity. There’s the opportunity to get involved in many aspects of the charity and we’ve seen lots of change over the past year with moving from office working to working from home.

Will I be at CFF in another 18 years? Time will tell, but at this present I am cherishing every moment of it.
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Cheers CFF!