Our services are a lifeline, offering a confidential and non-judgmental space for LGBTQ+ children, young people and their families to connect, share experiences, and receive emotional support. Our latest blog piece shares the impact and stories from the families who access our support from across the UK.

How to look. How to act. How to dress. Who to love. In today’s 24/7 media, children and young people are flooded with messages and signals about how they should look and act and what their gender means for them. As our media landscape continually widens, new forms and sources of pressure are created enforcing negative stereotypes and labels for young people such as “girls are not as interested in STEM subjects compared to boys” or “girls make better mothers”.

Our HodgePodge Community have kindly agreed for us to share their words

Have you ever stopped to consider what it might feel like if you could not wear the clothes you wanted to wear or walk hand in hand down the street with the person you love for fear of being on the receiving end of hatred and abuse for just being you? 70% of LGBTQ people in the UK avoid holding hands in public for fear of violence.

It’s September, it’s back-to-school-time and it’s a time for new beginnings. This year, invest in your Pencil Case of New with Think2Speak.

Think2Speak are proud to welcome the brilliant Rebecca Strickson as Artist in Residence.

Think2Speak will not be sending another email to your inbox full of deals and scarcity as we are not taking part in one of the “busiest shopping days of the year”, and we want to share why.

This week for Trans Awareness Week we thought we’d share the words and conversations from the children and families who attend Hodgepodge, our support group for trans and gender diverse children and young people.

Having real conversations helps you feel purpose in life as they allow you to build deep connections with people. Developing relationships is essential for humans to function efficiently. Feeling connected to the world is vital for your wellbeing and mental health. Yet in a world that is more connected than ever before, why is loneliness at an all-time high?

You will never know someone’s pronoun by simply looking at them. Using someone’s correct personal pronoun shows respect for their gender identity. When you refer to someone using the wrong pronoun, this can cause feelings of exclusion and distress.

No one left behind: panel and discussion

This week saw HIV Prevention England’s conference in London. Lizzie, our CEO and Founder, was asked to join the closing plenary panel to discuss ‘No one left behind’. Here’s she shares the four key points that she raised.

What can professionals, community leaders, friends and family do to be more supportive of trans children and young people?

The Trans Teen Survival Guide by Fox Fisher and Owl is a book we thoroughly recommend not only to young people but also to parents, guardians and carers, education and health professionals and anyone who wants to know more about the reality of social and medical transitions and the many opportunities and challenges faced by young people who are trans, gender-diverse or gender-questioning in the UK and beyond.

Zoe from a local secondary school has joined the team this week on work experience. Here is her guest blog; she choose the topic of trans youth as she's currently doing her A level Art on 'How ignorance affects trans people'.

Schools can prevent the decline of trans and non-binary students’ mental health - Zoe (16)

This week is Dying Matters Week and one of the ‘difficult’ subjects that Think2Speak counsellors, trainers and the team as a whole have to talk about with the young people and their families who access our services is helping them come to terms with a loved one coming to the end of their lives or passing away suddenly.

This National Conversation Week, I shall certainly be trying to find joy in striking up a conversation, at work and leisure. Why not join me and find time to say “Hello, How are you?” to someone you would not normally think you would want to talk to. View every conversation that you have as a golden opportunity to share and to learn. After all, you never know where such a conversation might lead you in the future!

Matti Colley, Project Assistant at Think2Speak pens their first blog piece  sharing their thoughts on communication and the developing programmes that fit with T2S's vision for a more inclusive, youth empowered Britain.