When I first met Jake, he was very enthusiastic about having a Mentor. He was awaiting a court date and was worried that he might go to prison. He had to attend every day to see his case worker. Once we had been matched our day together was classed as one of his meetings, so this made him happier. He was a very likeable and funny young man. We had a couple of weeks where we just went for a drink and a chat, he was very chatty and talked about his fears of going to prison.
I took him to the local art gallery, as he was interested in art, drawing and painting, I thought we would only be in there for a brief time, but he really enjoyed it and was in there for an hour and a half.
I was with him for over a year, and he worked so hard with the HYJS (Hull Youth Justice Service), and myself that he did not end up getting a custodial sentence. He completed a Prince of Wales award and got into college to do painting and decorating.
I felt a sense of pride to see how he had turned his life around and I had played a part in that. It is an extremely rewarding role and would recommend anyone to do it.