Louis’ Story

‘I just felt anxious, stressed, worthless. I thought why am I here? What am I doing?’

These were some of the devastating thoughts whirring round in Louis’ mind in his last year of primary school.

Louis had struggled for most of Year 6, experiencing bullying, name-calling, and even being told to kill himself. It isn’t a surprise that Louis found everything so overwhelming. ‘After school, I would just go in my room and cry, just be down, sad,’ says Louis. 

‘When I was starting secondary school, I was absolutely petrified,’ Louis openly shares.

‘It had really affected my self-confidence... I couldn’t cope. I needed someone to talk to. Someone who understood me and could help me through it all.'

This is when Louis was paired with his TLG Early Intervention coach Wendy from New Life Church, Letchworth.

Wendy remembers when she first met Louis. ‘You were very shy,’ Louis nods, ‘and you were very open with me about feeling insecure.’  Having coached children previously through TLG, Wendy felt hopeful, ‘I thought TLG Early Intervention was just the right thing for Louis, giving him space to talk, space to share how he really felt about things.’ 

Early Intervention coaching gave Louis a safe space to explore his emotions, work through his struggles, and find out a bit more about himself. ‘It helped to talk about my emotions with Wendy,’ says Louis, ‘if I’d had a bad morning or I was just really not feeling good about myself, I could talk to her and she’d help me through it and give me ways to sort of cope with it.’  

Wendy shared her experience, ‘The good thing about TLG Early Intervention is that it lasts a year and it’s a nice length of time for students. You have this consistency. We would meet every Wednesday lunch.’ 

Coaching has had a profound effect on Louis. Through lots of encouragement and support, his confidence has come on in leaps and bounds. He is an active member of a media and journalism club at school and even auditioned for Britain’s Got Talent! More importantly, he tells us about the difference in his personal life, ‘My parents have definitely noticed a lot of changes in me, ‘cause I’ve been more happy, more my usual self, and just really jolly and normal!’

Wendy now sees Louis as a confident young man who now feels like he has purpose and has a desire to go on and knows he has a future. 

Louis sums up his experience beautifully, ‘Coaching has helped me massively because before I was just a little Year 7 kid, just tucked away in a corner not knowing what his purpose was, and now, after having coaching, I’ve just come out as this intelligent and smart kid who has just developed himself.’ 

We’re excited to see what the future holds for you Louis!