You see the difference that you’re making every day

Alex Wilkinson never imagined himself starting a career in residential care, but ‘fell in love’ with the job straight away when he joined the North East Autism Society (NEAS).

The 25-year-old from South Shields previously worked in hospitality, including managing a local café while he completed a degree in Childhood Studies at Sunderland University.

After graduating with first-class honours, Alex wanted to put his knowledge to good use and took a leap of faith when he applied to be a residential child carer at Tunstall children’s residential home in Sunderland.

“I applied for this job not really knowing what to expect,” Alex said. “I didn’t really know this sort of work existed, I was completely oblivious to it before.”

Joining NEAS at the end of 2024 was a fresh start for Alex, who found the Society’s week-long induction introduced him to a new world.

Alex said: “The induction was really good, they open up this sort of world to you that you don’t really have an understanding of.

“They give you all the theory of it and prepare you for what that looks like in practice when you get into your service.”

Despite the usual nerves that come from starting a new job, Alex found that after settling in, he ‘fell in love with it straight away.’

Alex said:

Since then, Alex has taken every opportunity to progress his career, first moving into a developmental role, and then successfully applying to become assistant manager when the position became open.

Now he splits his time between supporting the management of the home and working directly with the young people.

Alex has helped one young person grow their communication skills from a ‘few key words’ to full sentences, something which Tunstall was praised for in its recent outstanding Ofsted report, and attended a family wedding with another of the home’s residents.

“We didn’t know whether we’d be able to go, and we didn’t know whether he’d tolerate being there, but he did really well. It was really lovely,” Alex said.

These highlight moments wouldn’t be possible without the strong relationships Alex has built with the young people he supports, and being able to make a difference to their lives is key to the job.

“It’s measurable. You see the difference that you’re making every day,”Alex said.

And every day is different, as Alex has helped make a difference in the home by fundraising directly for Tunstall, taking on challenges like the Great North Run, or a one-mile open water swim in Lake Windemere for the Great North Swim.

Alex has also qualified as a trainer for NEAS, instructing new members of staff on keeping themselves and the people they work with safe.

“Not many people love going to work every day, but there’s not a single day I dread it. I look forward to coming to work every single day,” Alex said.

“I’d never considered this as a job before, but I’m glad that I did.”