Reconnect South

💜 A little something from ReConnect... and it's FREE!

Sometimes, the smallest conversations can make the biggest difference.

I've recently put together a Peer Mentor Support Pack, designed to help young people who are supporting younger peers in colleges and other educational settings.

It's easy to underestimate just how valuable peer support can be. But it's equally important that young people offering that support feel confident, understand their boundaries and know when to ask for help themselves.

The booklet explores:
💬 Listening and supportive conversations
💜 Boundaries, confidentiality and safeguarding
🌱 Looking after your own wellbeing
🤝 Knowing when and where to seek additional support

I'm really pleased that this is now available as a FREE downloadable resource on the ReConnect website.

It's there for colleges, education professionals, youth workers, peer mentors and anyone else who might find it useful.

Please feel free to download it, use it and share it. If it helps even a handful of young people feel more confident in supporting one another, then it's done its job.

💜 Small conversations really can make a big difference.

🔗 Download your free copy: https://reconnect-south.co.uk/pricing-and-contact/

My daughter works in care, and knowing the emotional demands and challenges that come with her role has really got me thinking.

As a counsellor, I know the value of supervision and having a safe space to reflect and offload. Yet my daughter doesn't have access to that support.

Why not?

Surely those who spend their days caring for others deserve that same support?

I'm genuinely curious, how many care agencies offer regular reflective supervision or emotional support to their staff? And if they don't, why not?

A little professional update from me 💛

I’m really pleased to share that alongside continuing my work with ReConnect, I’ll shortly be starting a new part-time role with Yellow Door, working within their Frankie service supporting children and young people.

Yellow Door is an organisation I’ve admired for some time, so I feel genuinely privileged and excited to have the opportunity to join their specialist team.

ReConnect will continue exactly as before, supporting children, young people and families through counselling and therapeutic work. For me, these two roles feel incredibly complementary — allowing me to continue developing ReConnect while broadening my experience and learning within a specialist service.

I’ve always believed that we continue growing as therapists through the people we work with, the teams we learn from and the experiences we encounter, so I’m really looking forward to seeing what this next chapter brings. 💛

Clair

September isn’t a fresh start for everyone. 🍂

We often talk about September as a time for new beginnings — new classrooms, new teachers, new routines and a chance to start again.

But for some children and young people, September can feel very different.

Sometimes they manage the first few days or weeks remarkably well. Then the tiredness creeps in. The Sunday-night worry starts. The tummy aches return. Mornings become harder. Tempers get shorter. Or a young person who seemed to be coping simply starts to withdraw.

It doesn't necessarily mean they're being difficult or that something has suddenly gone wrong.

Sometimes it's simply the effort of holding it all together beginning to show.

And parents can feel it too — trying to encourage, reassure, get everyone out of the door and meet the expectations of school, while quietly wondering, “How hard should I push?”

There isn't always a simple answer.

But noticing the change, staying curious about what's underneath it and giving children space to talk — without immediately trying to fix it — can be a really good place to start.

So perhaps the question this September isn't just:

“How's school going?”

but...

“How are you finding being back?” 💛

ReConnect Family Counselling
Supporting children, young people and families across Southampton and the South Coast.

✨ ReConnect has had a little refresh! ✨

Our website has been updated to better reflect who we are, what we offer and the work we do supporting children, young people, adults and families.

There’s more information about the support available through ReConnect, a little more about me and my approach, and you can now also listen to my recent Fiesta FM radio conversation, where I had the opportunity to talk about mental health, family wellbeing and some of the things I feel passionately about in my work.

Whether you already know ReConnect, have worked with us before, or are simply curious about the support we offer, have a little look around.

🌿 ReConnect Family Counselling Supporting individuals and families through connection, understanding and therapeutic support.

🌐 www.reconnect-south.co.uk

fb.me

📻 Well… I did it! 🎙️😂

I had such a lovely time joining Patricia on Fiesta FM’s Nineties Nurture Hour today.

An hour of chatting about young people, families, mental health, parenting, belonging, neurodiversity, the world our children are growing up in… and quite a bit more besides!

Thank you Patricia for making it so easy for me to simply be me — sharing my thoughts, experiences and the things I care passionately about. ❤️

I certainly don’t have all the answers, but I really enjoyed having an open, honest and authentic conversation.

And obviously… I managed to squeeze in a little bit of my 90s raver history too. 😂🎶

🎧 If you fancy a listen, you can catch the show here:

https://player.autopod.xyz/1441395

Incredibly honoured and excited to be doing this show tomorrow. 90s tunes and chatting about my passion. Whats not to love.
Please tune in if you can.
Thank you

Looking forward to welcoming Family Counsellor Clair O'donovan from www.reconnect-south.co.uk onto my Nineties Nurture Hour radio show on https://fiestafm.co.uk/nineties-nurture-hour 11am this Weds 26/8/26
Hear how she helps families and young people reconnect with themselves, their relationships, and a sense of wellbeing
Catch us live at 11-12 this morning on 95FM if you happen to be local to Southampton or live on the website (or anytime on catch up). Help make this show the #1 show on the station! Listen in and send us a message. Fiesta 95 FM

Recording is here
https://player.autopod.xyz/1441395

We've only gone and won an award.
Thanks to the Greatest Hits radio news team for the nomination.

Reconnect (2026 Winner: UK Enterprise Awards) - SME News

Over the last few weeks, I've found myself reflecting on something I've been hearing more and more...

On the radio.

In conversations with friends.

From parents.

Even from young people.

There seems to be a growing feeling that the world feels less safe than it used to. Whether people are talking about knife crime, social media, hostility, or simply the way we sometimes seem to treat each other, the feeling underneath is often the same... fear and uncertainty.

That makes me sad.

Not because I think we should ignore the challenges, but because sometimes it feels as though we've started to believe there's nothing we can do about them.

Maybe we can't change the whole world overnight.

But perhaps we can change the little corner of it that we each live in.

The conversations we have around our dinner tables.

The way we speak to our children.

The example we set when someone disagrees with us.

The kindness we show our neighbours.

The time we make to really listen.

Small actions rarely make the headlines, but they're often where lasting change begins.

And when those small steps feel too difficult to take alone, it's okay to reach out. There are so many people, groups and organisations in our communities who genuinely want to help.

As a therapist, I'm reminded every day that people often have more influence than they first believe. Change doesn't always start with governments or policies. Sometimes it starts with one family, one conversation, one act of kindness.

💙 Perhaps today is simply an opportunity to pause and reflect.

Because while we may not be able to change the whole world, every one of us can help make our own communities a little safer, a little kinder, and a little more connected.

— Clair

This popped up on my personal feed.
I use the method all the time in my therapy sessions and help with parents... It's a brilliant dvd simple way to help children to.
Worth a watch.

https://www.facebook.com/share/192KJeB6im/