One of our intrepid explorers set off with the Avocet House Deputy Head to walk 86 miles along the Norfolk Coastal Path from Hunstanton to Great Yarmouth.  They planned six days of walking and five nights of camping, this meant all the heavy camping equipment had to be carried with them in enormous backpacks, which added an extra challenge!

There were tests along the way with discomfort, tiredness and solid rain for over seven hours!  At one point, our determined young person was asked what the challenge was teaching him, to which he replied, ‘what pain feels like’, but in reality it was teaching him resilience, perseverance, planning, social skills and a feeling of pride and accomplishment.

The bad moments were outweighed by some lovely moments; various people they met on the route kindly donated to the chosen charity; they struck up a friendship with a French family by lending their cooking equipment, which paid off when they were offered burgers in return; they helped a gentleman who had fallen in his garden and administered first aid; and, possibly the icing on the cake, they raised over £1200 for the East Anglian Air Ambulance.  Our considerate young person had chosen this charity as he was concerned how their service would be impacted by rising fuel prices.

What an achievement!  We suspect it won’t be long until they start planning the next expedition…..

The annual SES conference was held at Dunston Hall, Norwich on Thursday 21 May 2026.  The guest speakers were brothers, Andy and Matt Smith, who united in 2018 to form Smash Life, a child-centred company focussed on providing support services to young people and professionals.

Andy and Matt are care leavers and are striving to improve the lives of children in similar situations through offering inspirational talks and training.  They are able to provide a unique insight into what it can feel like to live within the care system, drawing on their own lived experiences and their combined professional experience of working with young people and families.

All SES staff were included in the conference as everyone is keen to learn as much as possible about how to improve the lives of the children we look after.  This can be a logistical challenge as part of the team need to stay with the children, therefore Matt and Andy had to speak once in the morning and repeat everything in the afternoon for a second sitting!

One of the areas SES has been focussing on this year is capturing the Voice of the Child.  Some of our forms and documents have already been updated to assist with this, but Andy and Matt gave more of an insight into what it can feel like to read your own records when leaving care.  It was a very interesting and thought-provoking day, prompting a lot of reflection as well as ideas to take back to SES to improve our current way of recording information about young people.

We are hoping it won’t be the last we see of Smash Life!

In May, four children and six adults set off for Eurocamp in Duinrell, Netherlands.  The trip was extra special for three of the young people as they had never been abroad before, this was going to be a brand new experience for them!  The group travelled by ferry from Dover before settling in for the week at the site in the Netherlands.  The camp gave everyone the chance to experience something different and build confidence away from home.

Throughout the week, young people enjoyed swimming sessions, the theme park, relaxing together at the lodge, BBQ evenings, games nights and fully exploring everything the site had to offer.  Trips away from the camp had also been arranged, including time in Amsterdam where young people experienced a new city, explored local shops and enjoyed seeing a different culture. One young person also had the opportunity to visit the Ajax stadium — something that was a real highlight for him as he had previously completed a tour of all 92 football league stadiums in the UK!

The week came with moments of challenge, including changes to plans, tiredness and some of the group were struck down with illness, but the young people adapted well, supported each other and continued to make the most of the experience.

They all fully enjoyed the opportunity to try new things, build relationships, gain independence and create positive memories that will stay with them long after returning home.

Part of the PATH plan for both Avocet and Turnstone House this year was to organise at least one residential trip for each of the children to enjoy. This is often easier said than done, but the staff rose to the challenge and every child has a break planned for 2026; destinations include Bucharest, Madrid, Paris, Latitude, Prague, Cornwall, Greece!

Ambitiously, the goal is for all children to travel abroad to widen their cultural experiences, but sometimes trips have to start off by being a bit closer to home. In March, one young person was taken to Butlin’s to experience a family-style holiday with two of the adults from SES. He was very excited and couldn’t wait to get into the apartment when they first arrived! After settling in, the three of them spent the week swimming, braving the high ropes, playing mini golf, racing go karts, shooting air rifles and enjoying fair ground rides.

Our young person managed to fully embrace the fun, despite how busy it was. It was such a fun-filled week that another holiday to recover would have been ideal!

A charity coffee and cake sale was held at Turnstone House at the end of September, with all staff and young people invited.  Young people were encouraged to bake a donation to sell on the day and lots of adults made their own creations at home.  Everything made for an impressive display of baked treats!

The proceeds raised were to go to the James Paget Hospital Cardiac Unit for them to use as they pleased.  The mother of a young person at Turnstone House had spent a long while in this hospital earlier on in 2025, and he wanted to show his appreciation to the staff that looked after her. 

He proudly presented the cheque for £251.41 to staff at the hospital in October.  He did exceptionally well, explaining how the money had been raised by selling the baked treats, and how the dining room in the house had been decorated especially for the sale. He explained how young people and adults joined together to raise the money. The Cardiac Unit were delighted and said they would  spend the money wisely, they were very grateful to Turnstone House and the team that helped to make this possible.