Meet the team...Paul, Demelza's new transition navigator

“That’s why I’m so excited to be stepping into my new role,” said Paul – one of our two new Transition Navigators! “In this newly created role, I’ll be able to focus solely on supporting families going through transition, signposting them to the resources and services that will fit them best.”

Paul comes from a background as a Demelza healthcare assistant, which he did for ten years, and he’s been working with young people with complex needs as a whole for fifteen years. He was always particularly interested in finding new ways for young people to connect with Demelza’s services – for example through gaming – so this role feels like a natural next step for Paul.

“A lot of families just want certainty,” said Paul. “It might be one big thing they’re worried about – maybe they still want access to a hydro pool after they leave Demelza, for example, and don’t know where to look – or it could be they want help with the whole process from start to finish.” Whatever their needs, Paul will help make the transition journey smoother and hopefully easier. He’s really looking forward to sitting down with families and helping them to access the services that are most important to them, and seeing how this new role develops going forward.

In addition to working one-to-one, the team is also going to be running group events to bring families in similar situations together. Alongside our upcoming Children and Young People group sessions, we will be running a transition clinic for young people aged 14+ where we will talk through anything and everything about the move from children to adult services including filling out forms, power of attorney, benefits and more!

Plus, we’re introducing a teen and parent carer support group for those who are in or who have been through the transition process to get together to help each other, and offer advice and support.