JIGSAW FAMILY SUPPORT LTD Alternative Provision Cumbria
Supporting Children and Young People back into learning
Jigsaw Family Support provides personalised outreach, tuition and small-group provision for children and young people who are disengaged from education or struggling to attend. Through consistent relationships and interest-led support, we help each child or young person to rebuild confidence, reconnect with learning and move towards the right educational pathway, while working closely with their families and professionals.
What We Do
Jigsaw Family Support provides holistic, person-centred support to children, young people, and families who need it most. We specialise in working with those who are disengaged from education or not attending school due to a range of factors, including social, emotional, or mental health challenges.
Our Outreach Team, made up of of Family Support Workers, Team Leads and Tutors, offers an individualised, needs-led approach for each child or young person. We work closely with families and collaborate with schools and other professionals to ensure consistent, joined-up support.
Our aim is to help children and young people who are struggling to access or engage with education by supporting them to:
- Rebuild relationships
- Reconnect with learning
- Re-engage with education
- Refocus on their future
We work with each child, young person, and family on a tailored basis—both short-term and long-term—journeying with them towards their identified goals. This may involve support to re-engage with their current school, bespoke alternative provision while a new placement is identified, or personalised transition support into a new setting. We also provide outreach support for those already in an educational placement who require additional help to maintain their attendance and progress.
Who We Are
Jigsaw Family Support was founded in 2016 by Stephen Whitehouse, a children’s workforce professional with over 20 years’ experience in children’s homes and alternative provision settings. Drawing on extensive expertise of supporting children and young people with Special Educational Needs, Stephen established Jigsaw Family Support to provide individualised, young-person-centred support, focused on family support and re-engagement with education.
Since then, Jigsaw has grown into a multidisciplinary team of Family Support Workers, Outreach Tutors, and educational leaders, with experience across teaching, youth work, therapeutic practice and social care. Each young person referred to the service is carefully matched with the worker or tutor, best suited to their needs, interests and circumstances.
Positive, trusting relationships are at the heart of our work. We work collaboratively with children and young people, parents and other professionals - ensuring that each child's voice, views and individual needs remain central to their support.
Commissioners, families and partner agencies can expect a reliable, responsive and trustworthy service focused on achieving the best possible outcomes for every child and young person we support.
Testimonials
‘Our son had been out of school for 3 years having been bullied and unsupported in school. Traumatised by his experiences - he vowed he would never go back. Steve Whitehouse is the catalyst, who made our son’s return to education possible and enjoyable'