Luke believes peoples aren't to be trusted, they let you down,. He blames the system, it's not fair and it owes him - big time.
Given that he grew up in care moving from placement to placement, children's home to children's home, maybe he has a point.
He signed up for In2Out resettlement mentoring support, getting to know his Mentor while he was still in prison, and then continuing to work together after release into the community.
After an initial false start with accommodation, Luke was given his own place - a home. He loves it, keeping it clean and assembling furniture to make it his own. He's proud of his place. But growing up in care has left Luke with gaps in his knowledge of a functioning domestic environment, leaving him with low self esteem and doubting his ability to manage. And adopting a lifestyle of living on takeaways has not helped his struggle with budgeting and money.
His In2Out Mentor has helped him develop his life skills, teaching him about healthy eating and cooking together, which has not only helped build a trusting relationship but shown Luke how he can save money by cooking for himself.
One day, he and his Mentor planned a meal, worked out a budget and went shopping for ingredients. Back at Luke's place, they cooked the meal for six people. After eating two portions together, the remaining four portions were put into the freezer for Luke to defrost and have a quick nutritious meal in the future.
The following week, his Mentor asked him if he'd eaten one of the meals from the freezer. But Luke had binned all four portions just three days later, saying they had gone off. It was then that his Mentor realised that Luke didn't understand that food can be stored in a freezer for months without spoiling. Having explained this to him, Luke realised what a benefit this was to him and how it would help him save money.
Now he is eating the food he enjoys, when he wants it. He's feeling more confident in his abilities and is saving money.
His Mentor has learnt a lesson too. Our young people have gaps in their knowledge and they don't know what they don't know.
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