Barnardo's Real Gifts

Sophie was a lonely isolated teenager.  When she met a young man at her parent’s party who paid her some attention, she was flattered. He bought her presents and made her feel special. Then he asked her to do terrible, frightening sexual acts.  The more expensive the presents, the worse his demands.

After being alerted by the police we were able to help Sophie understand what had happened to her.  Her ‘18 year old’ boyfriend turned out to be 34, she was just 16.

Your gift of £90 can pay for a Senior Practitioner to carry out a one to one session with a young person to help them recover from the trauma of sexual abuse and change their lives. It shows then that there is someone they can trust to escape their horrific ordeal and give them the support they need to help build a happier future.

“Barnardo’s helped me realise what was happening, and then they helped me escape. Now, I want to help others.” Sophie