Jahzyah, 20, moved to a Centrepoint home two years ago after being in and out of the care system from the age of four. He’s recently been accepted into the Identity School of Acting and is currently waiting to hear from the council to move into his own accommodation. Each time you make a Kindness and Co purchase and choose Centrepoint to donate to, you’re helping to change the lives of real people like Jahzyah.
Moving into care
Jahzyah, 20, was first moved into care at the age of four when social workers became aware that he was living in an abusive, unstable and unsafe household. From being placed into care, he was then moved around between different care and foster homes for years, before finding a home with a family for longer than he expected.
“I was taken into the foster care system at the age of 4 because I came from an abusive household. From there, I bounced around from care home to care home, and I was abused a few times in care as well. On the fourth or fifth care home actually ended up being my longest stay”.
He stayed with this family for around six years and developed a close relationship with the parents, children and grandchildren in the house, a relationship that he still holds close to him.
“I ended up staying there close to six years, and I actually still call those people mum and dad to this day. They genuinely didn’t treat me like I was a foster care kid. They treated me like I was one of their children, and I had sleepovers at their children’s places with their grandchildren, and I called them cousins because we were the same age”.
He remembers getting to try out new activities with them, like learning to swim and joining a local ice hockey team, as well as going on family holidays to Devon and Cornwall. However, after six years, they weren’t able to take care of him anymore, and he was moved back into the care system.
From here, he was moved around a couple of different homes, all whilst going to college and trying to find his feet. At 18, he was given the option to remain in care, where he would lose a lot of the support he was receiving or move into supported accommodation.
“I just felt like I’m already quite an independent person, and so the best move for me would be to go into supported housing and keep the support there just in case I need it. And then I would have more opportunity going forward than I would have had if I had remained, and that’s how I ended up being sent to Centrepoint”.
Coming to Centrepoint
When Jahzyah first arrived at Centrepoint, he was moved to a high-support service, where the support staff could assess what level of guidance he might need to live independently. Whilst living with his foster family, Jahzyah had been able to grow a lot of independent skills, which meant that he felt ready to look after himself.
“The family I stayed with they were very diligent in making sure I knew how to look after myself. From the age of 11, I was cooking and cleaning and doing my own laundry and everything. They made sure that I had those skills, so it wasn’t particularly difficult for me to adjust to living on my own”.
Before too long, Jahzyah was moved from the high-support service into the accommodation he is in now.
Whilst living there, he’s really enjoyed the opportunity to get involved in lots of different activities from Christmas parties and barbecues to visiting museums and galleries. “I remember going on a trip to the Science Museum, which was pretty fun because I really like science”.
He says that they frequently run cookery classes at the house, which is something he loves to get involved with. At school, he was able to get his Level 2 Food Production Qualification, so he’s been able to help other residents learn some basic cooking skills during those sessions. “If I’m in the mood, I can help out if someone needs it. Everything from like deboning a chicken and cutting it up, or if someone is struggling to cut an onion, I’ll show them how to properly dice it and just stuff like that”.
Growing his passion for acting
From a young age, Jahzyah was always pushed towards doing science, and whilst he was at school, he really thought that this was going to be his career path. “I grew up being told I was smart, and I got decently good grades. I was constantly being told to get a good job and become a doctor or a leading scientist.”
However, growing up, he saw his grandad starring in films from Marvel movies to comedy blockbusters, and this instilled a passion for acting from childhood. “My grandad on my mum’s side used to be an actor, and growing up, whenever I got to see him, he always had some sort of story of what he would see on set or the people he would meet. It always seemed so fun – getting to travel for work, it just seemed like such a big benefit because I’ve never really been able to go to other countries, and that really appeals to me”.
For Jahzyah it was a huge realisation that he wanted to take his life in the direction that felt right for him rather than what had been expected from him. “I came to the realisation that I hadn’t given the time to think about what I really wanted to do in my life and whether science was something that I wanted to continue with. I stopped to think about what I wanted to do with my life, and I realised I wanted to try out being an actor”.
To support him in pursuing acting, he was referred to the CP Works team, which helped him identify internships or apprenticeships that would bring him one step closer to his goal. With that in mind, Hannah, a Centrepoint training and jobs advisor, identified and helped him onto a placement with the National Theatre.
Whilst there, he was able to get his name down for an audition with the prestigious Identity School of Acting, an award-winning part-time drama school. If successful in his audition, Jahzyah might then be able to join their impressive alumni list, including Damson Idris, John Boyega, Regé-Jean Page and Letitia Wright.
Before too long, Jahzyah had his audition but was unsure about how it went and felt worried about what the next step might be. “Having such an open script was a bit of trouble for me to play. I thought I didn’t do quite as well as I could have, and I was so nervous about whether or not I might get in”.
However, only a couple of hours later, they emailed him to say that he had been accepted. He was so excited that he got in and ran out to tell his support workers as soon as he could. “I was just scrolling on my phone, and the notification popped up. I literally ran out of my room in my pyjamas, like I didn’t even bother getting changed or anything. I immediately just burst out of my room and had to let them know I got in”.
When asked about his dream role, he knows exactly what character he would want to play. “My dream role would be a live-action version of the Disney film Tarzan. I relate a lot to Tarzan, at least growing up. It was like this guy looks like me when I had longer black braids, and we have the same build as well”.
“Not only does Tarzan look like me, but I can relate to him as well. Especially because I went through foster care, where I had that feeling of knowing that my real parents were out there, but I couldn’t go and see them when I was bouncing from place to place, just like Tarzan. You know he’s with the gorillas and he doesn’t quite fit in with the gorillas, but he makes do with what he’s got and kind of figures it out”.
Looking to the future
Jahzyah is currently waiting to hear from the council on when he can move into his own accommodation. He looks back on his experiences of staying with Centrepoint and recognises how living independently but with support on hand helped him to be ready for moving on. “I’m grateful for the experience of technically living on my own, but while still having the support in place”.
“I’ve prepared for things as best I can now, and I’ve been living semi-independently for two years, and I just need to get used to living independently. It’s just the next natural step”.
He’s looking forward to beginning his classes with the Identity Acting School and the opportunities that might come from working together, especially roles that might help him to travel the world. At the same time, he’s been looking for jobs that would give him the flexibility to take on auditions, and Hannah has been helping him to look through his options.
He has some advice for young people who might be facing similar challenges that helped him through his own experiences. “My advice would be just don’t get too hung up on things. Bad things will happen, but in the same way, good things will also happen, and if you keep pushing on and keep moving forward, then eventually something good is going to happen, and you should be ready for it”.
We (at Centrepoint) are so immensely proud of Jahzyah’s incredible achievements, and we hope that his upcoming housing review gives him the outcome he deserves. We can’t wait to see him on the big screen soon!
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