Why This Programme?

Children and young people in care have often experienced significant trauma, loss, and instability. These early challenges can affect how they trust, relate, and express themselves. Drawing on my doctoral research, my work in schools and police custody, and over a decade of community engagement, this programme is uniquely tailored to support the emotional well-being of children in residential care through the transformative power of creative writing.

What Makes This Intervention Successful?

Creative writing is not a one-size-fits-all approach. Its strength lies in flexibility: it adapts to each child’s passions, hobbies, and personal experiences. Whether writing about football, superheroes, music, or friendship, children engage more fully when activities connect to what they love. Emotional expression emerges organically, making the process safe, accessible, and deeply personal.

This is not traditional therapy. It is a structured, trauma-informed creative space where children find their voice, build emotional literacy, and reframe their stories on their own terms.

Why Emotional Intelligence Matters for Children in Care

• Self-regulation: Manage anxiety, anger, and overwhelm in safe ways
• Self-awareness: Recognise and articulate complex emotions
• Empathy: Build meaningful relationships through emotional understanding
• Resilience: Cope with change, rejection, and uncertainty
• Agency: Reclaim control by writing new narratives of identity and strength

How It Works: A Trauma-Informed Creative Writing Journey

Each session integrates storytelling with emotional intelligence tools:

• Emotional check-in and mindfulness warm-up
• Guided writing prompts centred on emotions and identity
• Voluntary sharing and group dialogue
• Reflection activities using emotional vocabulary and tools
• Closing with affirmations or grounding techniques

Children can write fiction, letters, poetry, or journaling—whatever feels natural and safe.

Delivery Format & Safeguarding

• Group Size: Max. 4 children per session
• Facilitator: Yousuf Shah (DBS-checked and police vetted)
• Location: Sessions held only in communal spaces
• Supervision: A care home staff member is always present. The facilitator is never alone with a child.

All activities follow trauma-informed principles: Safety, Trust, Choice, Empowerment, and Collaboration.

Outcomes You Can Expect

Children will:

• Develop emotional literacy and confidence
• Gain tools for emotional regulation
• Show empathy, openness, and positive peer interaction
• Experience improved mood, trust, and behaviour
• Begin reframing trauma into strength through story

Staff will:

• Gain insights into children’s inner worlds
• Build stronger emotional connections with residents
• Use a shared emotional vocabulary for support and care

Let’s Get Started

I would be delighted to pilot this intervention in your care home. We can evaluate its impact together and build something sustainable that supports your children’s emotional well-being and personal growth.

Contact:
Info@yousufshah.co.uk