Insight into Mentoring: Interview with Francesca

Meet Francesca, one of our mentors, as she shares why she became a Big Sister, what mentoring has meant to her, and why she’d encourage others to take the leap. From dog walks and hot chocolates to building trust and confidence—Francesca talks about her experience of volunteering as a mentor and why supporting young people matters.

What motivated you to want to become a big sister?

I had been looking at doing something like this for a while. I’ve worked with families with West Sussex County Council for over ten years; firstly as an Independent Domestic Violence Advisor and now in management of staff supporting victims of Domestic and Sexual violence and abuse, so I am aware of how important initiatives like this are. I am fortunate enough to have a young son and have learnt a lot through my own experience of parenting and felt that through my personal and professional experiences could provide support to a child who needs it.

 

What skills, knowledge and experience have you bought to the mentoring role?

I pride myself on being calm, kind and caring both at work and in my personal life. I would describe myself as an empathic person, a good listener, positive and encouraging.

Because of my career, I am passionate about keeping children and young people safe and enabling every child to thrive. I believe all children should feel safe, have equal opportunities, learn about diversity, kindness, dignity and respect and healthy relationships at a young age.

I have extensive knowledge of safeguarding issues which is important in any role where you are working with children and young people.

My personal experience of parenting has also helped me to better connect with my ‘little’.

How have you found the mentoring experience, so far?

It will be two years in August since I was matched with my ‘little’ and I think I enjoy the meet ups as much as they do. We’ve laughed a lot and shared stories, we’ve been on dog walks, litter picking, swimming, had cake, been for dinner and bowling and she has celebrated bonfire night with my family. She’s great with my little boy and she’s had me trying to keep up with them at tag and find them in hide and seek.

I wouldn’t say I am someone who is amazing with kids but I’ve been told that I’m easy to talk to and calm which I think has helped to build trust with my ‘little’. I would like to think that I have been a positive role model and hopefully they feel that I have offered a listening ear as well as being enjoyable to spend time with!

What sort of activities do you do with your ‘little’?

There are only a couple of years between my ‘little’ and my son which is helpful when we are deciding on activities to do together. We enjoy spending time with each other so our activities can be very simple and inexpensive, like taking a trip to Dunelm, blackberry picking, visiting the butterfly gardens, seeing the animals at Pets At Home and having a chat over cake and a hot chocolate.

I have also had her over to my house to make pizza and play games.

Do you have any advice to those that are thinking about becoming a mentor?

If you are thinking about it then go for it! Being a mentor is so rewarding and an opportunity to build lifelong relationships. You will find you get as much from it as your ‘little’.

If you've been inspired by Francesca's story and would like to explore how you can get involved with mentoring a child in West Sussex, then contact us today or submit an enquiry via our online form.