At Innovate Trust, we are privileged to support some truly amazing individuals. But every so often, we meet someone whose story, and resilience, leaves a lasting impression on everyone they meet.
This is the case for 21-year-old Negina. If you ever visit her supported living home in Rhondda Cynon Taf, you will be greeted by a smile that quite literally lights up the room. Today, Negina is a bubbly, thriving young woman who is loving life in the Welsh valleys, but her journey here was not an easy one.
From Kabul to Cardiff
5 years ago, amidst sudden and escalating conflict in Afghanistan, Negina and her family were given just days to escape. Forced to leave behind their home, their belongings, and the life they knew, they undertook a long and difficult journey to find safety.
With no choice in where they would be resettled, fate brought Negina and her family to Wales. As they went through the asylum process, they began the work of rebuilding their lives from scratch. Negina, who has a learning disability, physical disabilities, and is a wheelchair user, eventually settled with her family in Rhondda Cynon Taf, which is where her journey with Innovate Trust first began.
Taking the first steps: From outreach to independent living
We first met Negina through our Outreach service. Our team began visiting her at home, supporting her day-to-day needs. As a natural progression from the Outreach sessions, the opportunity came up for her to move into one of our supported living houses in the area.
That was 18 months ago. On moving into her home, Negina did not speak a word of English, and her support team did not speak Afghan Dari or Farsi. But language was not a barrier for a team committed to person-centred care.
Determined to make her feel welcome, the support staff installed translation apps on their phones so they could ask Negina questions, learn about her likes and dislikes, and communicate as naturally as possible.
Today, she understands day-to-day conversations, expresses her needs and opinions effectively, and now has control of her own life. It is so lovely to see her determined personality and sense of humour coming out more and more every day. Negina’s English has progressed immensely, fulfilling her own wish, and that of her parents,to learn the language.
The dedication and hard work that the staff team have provided has ensured that Negina is happy and settled in her home. The fantastic team, with whom Negina has developed an amazing rapport, deserve to be praised. Their support has ensured that Negina’s new life in Wales is a happy one, where she is safe and well cared for and is able to live her life to the full.
Food, fashion, and family
A great aspect of Negina’s transition has been the relationship between her support team at Innovate Trust, and Negina’s large, loving family. Her family still lives locally and visit often. They have welcomed our support workers with open arms, sharing stories, history, and, crucially, Negina’s favourite foods.
Thanks to Cardiff’s wonderfully diverse multicultural shops, the team have been able to source authentic ingredients to cook Negina’s favourite traditional Afghan dishes at home.
In the house, Negina likes to cook traditional dishes with staff like Kabuli Pulao, Shola, and Mantu. She loves her parents' home cooking and they often bring food for her. Her mum makes delicious baklava!
Negina has also had the chance to try out a few different activities with Innovate Trust to see what she enjoys. She has tried things like yoga, holistic therapy, and gardening, but she has a few firm favourites:
- Shopping trips: Negina loves going out to shop for clothes. She also really enjoys the process of taking items back to the shop to get a refund!
- Pop music: She is a huge music fan, loves Michael Jackson, and a long list of recent pop songs she can belt out and sing along to. Benson Boon, Miles Smith and Alex Warren, are just a handful of her favourites.
- Her own sanctuary: Negina really values her own space. She loves nothing more than relaxing and hanging out in her lovely pink room, which has been decorated exactly how she chose.
- Next stop: The Moon! Negina loves talking about space and going to The Moon one day. She is interested and inspired by so much, and is eager to learn what else life has on offer.
Closing the gap with technology
Recently, Negina has been a participant in our Closing the Gap project. This initiative is all about bringing accessible technology into the lives of the people we support.
Through the project, Negina was gifted a new smartphone. She lovingly refers to her tech training sessions as “going to school,” and she is incredibly proud of her new skills.
Using her smartphone, Negina can now video call her family whenever she wants, search for her favourite pop songs on YouTube, and learn more about the digital world.
A bright and positive future
A year and a half after making the move into supported living, Negina is having a great time. She has built lovely relationships with her housemate, and the support team, and she continues to grow in confidence every day. Negina is even looking forward to taking her first holiday to Carmarthenshire at the end of July!
Negina’s journey from a young asylum seeker fleeing conflict to a thriving young woman in the Welsh valleys is a testament to her incredible spirit and the power of dedicated, person-centred support. We are so incredibly proud to be part of her story.
