For #InternationalWomensDay this year, Alex looks back on her early memories and reflects on what this day means to her.❤️
Click the link to read her full blog: https://bit.ly/4uaYwFk
#IWD #CareExperienced #YoungPeople
Happy #InternationalWomensDay! ❤️
Every care-experienced girl and young woman should have their rights protected, their voices heard, and equal access to opportunities.
Today, and every day, we’re celebrating them and continuing to push for change, so they can thrive.
Have you heard the big news?
@jinglejam.co.uk will be supporting us again this year!
Last year was incredible, and the support we received meant we could reach even more care-experienced young people.
A massive thanks to everyone at Jingle Jam for making this possible 🙌
#JingleJam2026
We’re heading to the NAVSH 2026 Annual Conference in Birmingham
next week 🙌
We’ll be there to share about our Teachers Who Care training and our Propel into Education services. We hope to see you there!
Find out more about Teachers Who Care: bit.ly/4b2i5qL
Bold text on a red phone-shaped icon reads "SOMEONE WHO CARES" in bright yellow letters. Below is a blue heart with a yellow phone symbol inside. The icon is set against a light peach background, surrounded by a blue circle and radiating lines.
There's a lot going on in the world right now and it may be making you feel upset or unsettled.
Our Care Advice Line is open 10am to 5pm. We're here to listen and support you.
Call: 0800 023 2033
WhatsApp: 0786 003 4982
Email: advice@becomecharity.org.uk
Graphic titled “Introduction to Student Finance” on a light blue background. The session covers the student finance application process, required evidence, additional funding, and tips for care-experienced students. Date and time: Wednesday 4 March, 6–7pm.
Are you, or someone you support, care-experienced and thinking of applying to uni?
We’re running a free online workshop to help students understand how student finance works and everything they need to know before and after they apply.
Click the link to sign up: https://bit.ly/4azOt57
A person is wearing a large, fluffy brown dog costume with a small black hat, standing in front of a blue shop window decorated with various cards, photos, and Christmas decorations.
Cover of a book titled "Dogs of Chelsea Park." It features a whimsical illustration of four dogs in a park setting, surrounded by greenery and a sign reading "Sneaky Hound Walk." The subtitle reads "Tales of the adventures & friendships of the dogs and their people."
Huge thanks to a wonderful group of dog walkers in Sheffield who fundraised £600 from the sale of their book, Dogs of Chelsea Park, in memory of their dear friend Barley. She was a real champion of children in care and care leavers ❤️
You’re all brilliant, and we couldn’t do this without you.
Yesterday, we were at The Care Leaders Summit in York 🙌
We loved chatting about our support services and our Personal Adviser Development Programme, which is the first accredited programme of its kind in England.
Find out more about our programme: https://bit.ly/4qTdhK9
On Tuesday, Tia, a care-experienced young person, joined us for a breakfast meeting at Downing Street.
Watch her video for some behind-the-scenes moments from the day 🙌
Want to know more about what we get up to? Click the link below:
https://bit.ly/4cNq2T1
A group of 25 people stand in front of the famous black door of Number 10 Downing Street, surrounded by the building's traditional black wrought-iron railings. They are a diverse mix of men and women dressed in formal attire, smiling.
We were back at Number 10 yesterday with some brilliant care-experienced young people and our trustees, joined by Minister Nick Thomas-Symonds.
We discussed young people’s aspirations, the opportunities that public appointments can create, and why diversity in decision-making matters.
For #CareDay, Ashe reflects on her experience of entering care at 14 and challenges the stigma around older children in care.
Read her full blog: https://bit.ly/46il5xL
Get involved and celebrate Care Day with us!
To celebrate #CareDay, Chloe Mae from our Youth Editorial Board, shares her story of being in foster care and why she wants to see change within the care system.
Find out how to get involved and celebrate Care Day with us!
https://bit.ly/4aYZmNR
Today is #CareDay 🙌 Join us to show you care.
We want to show that there are many people who care about children and young people with care experience.
Find our how you can get involved: https://bit.ly/4aYZmNR
Tomorrow is the 11th annual Care Day! And we want to hear from you.
Watch the video to see how you can get involved.
Don’t forget to include #CareDay so we can share your posts.
Together, let’s raise awareness and make the care system better. 🙌
Final few days left to vote!
Help us secure over £25,000 in funding through Project for Awesome.
Click the link below to watch our nomination video, created with the brilliant Callum, and hit vote.
https://projectforawesome.com/videos/project-for-awesome-become
#P4A2026
Vote for Become to help us receive over £25,000!
Project for Awesome is a fundraiser where people vote for the charities they want to support.
Every vote helps us to continue supporting care-experienced children and young people.
https://projectforawesome.com/videos/project-for-awesome-become
On a red background, large white text at the top reads “ Keeping children close to the people and places that matter” Below this is a pink rectangular quotation box containing the text: "We welcome the Government’s commitment to recruit and retain more foster carers, particularly strengthening local authority provision, so more children can stay close to home and with their siblings. For too long, children in care have been moved to a foster home miles away, due to nowhere suitable nearby, breaking relationships, disrupting education and harming their mental health. With foster carers leaving the sector in record numbers while children continue to enter care each year, this plan must work now and for the future. Success will mean no child is moved away, when it’s not in their best interests. Keeping children close to the people and places that matter to them must be the priority, so they have the stability, safety and support they need. By Anela Anwar, Chief Executive ”
It’s great to see the Government committing to recruit and keep more foster carers. We hope this will mean more children can stay close to home and their siblings.
Our #GoneTooFar campaign fights to keep children close to the people and places that matter. Find out more: https://loom.ly/A5d26pM
This week, the All-Party Parliamentary Group for Care-Experienced Children and Young People, which we support, held its Annual General Meeting.
We’re pleased to share that jessasatomp.bsky.social and darrenpaffey.bsky.social have been elected as Co-Chairs.
Exciting plans ahead - watch this space!
Brilliant news to kick-start the morning 🙌
UCAS application fee will be waived for care leaver applicants across the UK up to age 26, from the 2027 application cycle.
This will make a real difference for many young people across the UK.
One week. Two reports.
Again, showing that the care system is failing - and it's children and young people paying the price.
But this can be fixed. We need a national strategy to create the right homes where children can grow and feel safe.
Read the full article: https://loom.ly/DrIHAzg
On a red background, large yellow text at the top reads “LET’S END THE CARE CLIFF.” Below this is a pink rectangular quotation box containing the text: “...The Government’s recent offer of free eye tests and prescriptions for care leavers is a welcome step in strengthening support for those leaving care. However, this measure does little to address the far more urgent crisis facing care leavers: a third will experience homelessness within two years of leaving care.” The quote is attributed in blue text at the bottom of the quotation box to Anela Anwar, Chief Executive, Letter, The Guardian.
It's good to see the Government increasing support for care leavers but it doesn't go far enough.
Thousands of care-experienced young people are still facing homelessness every year.
Let's fix this. Let's permanently #EndTheCareCliff
Read our letter in The Guardian: https://loom.ly/Ub_4FUE
Huge Policy win 🙌
Last year, we suggested changes to strengthen the Children’s Wellbeing and Schools Bill to better support care-experienced young people. Today, the Government has adopted them.
Watch Simone, our Policy and Public Affairs Officer, give a full breakdown.
We’re so excited to introduce our new Youth Editorial Board 🙌
Ashe, Autumn, Chloe, Lawrence, Mary, Max, Tia and Tash will be joining us over the next year, working on creative projects and helping us to reach even more care-experienced young people.
Watch this space!
Here's some of our favourite moments from 2025!
From campaigning and visiting No. 10, to incredible collaborations with our partners and creators for Jingle Jam, it’s been a year to remember.
Thank you to everyone who made 2025 so special – here’s to 2026 🙌
The moment it happened! 🏆 Huge congratulations to Ashley for winning Celebrity Mastermind last night!
This support helps us to continue the work we do at Become to stand with care-experienced young people.
The black chair was no match for Ashley John-Baptiste.
Huge congratulations to Ashley for winning Celebrity Mastermind 🙌
Not only did he take home the trophy, Ashley's win helped support the work we do at Become.
Massive thanks for your support, Ashley!
A huge thanks to Ashley John-Baptiste for choosing to support us on #CelebrityMastermind!
He’s taking on the famous black chair tonight, but first he sat down with our Youth Editorial Board who put him under the spotlight: https://loom.ly/rPC5e1A
Watch Ashley tonight at 7:30pm on BBC Two.
“Your two minutes start... in 48 hours!" ⏱️
Ashley John-Baptiste is taking on #CelebrityMastermind this Monday!
He'll be braving the famous black chair all in aid of Become.
Good luck, Ashley!
Tune in to BBC Two at 7:30pm on Monday 29 December: https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/m002p246
On a light blue background and dark blue text, the title, "CHRISTMAS FOR THE CARE-EXPERIENCED," is centred at the top in bold capital letters. Below the title are three stanzas of poetry. In the bottom right corner, there is a red arrow pointing to the right. Text Transcription: Christmas is not always the same song, not always stockings hung in childhood halls. For some of us, it was silence, a borrowed chair at someone else’s table, a season that reminded us of what was missing. But we have learned to rewrite it. To take fragments of culture, different traditions, different homes, and weave them into something new. Christmas becomes the warmth of chosen family, the laughter of friends who call us in, the bond that says you belong here, not because of blood, but because of love.
On the same light blue background and dark blue text, there are the final two stanzas of the poem, followed by the author’s name, "By Alex Budhoo." At the bottom centre, there is a red heart with five lines radiating outward from the top. Text Transcription: It is resilience wrapped in ribbon, joy claimed without guilt, a reminder that care experience is not the absence of family, but the courage to build one. And so, when the lights glow, we see ourselves reflected- not outsiders, not loners, but makers of our own traditions, keepers of our own flame.
For care-experienced young people, Christmas can be difficult for many reasons.
We're sharing a powerful poem from Alex, a young person we work with, on what this time of year means to her.
If you need support this Christmas, click the link below:
https://loom.ly/mPe5Dks
From Westminster Bridge to the doors of No. 10, watch the behind-the-scenes of our banner drop and #GoneTooFar petition hand-in!
For over two years, we've been fighting to keep children close to the people and places that matter to them. It's time for change.
Find out more: https://loom.ly/A5d26pM
