Medway care leavers and MidKent College students made five short videos on GPs, dentists, asthma and panic attacks. Nine NHS boards now share them.

Young people who grew up in care in Medway have made a set of short videos to help others like them use the NHS. They cover the things care leavers told the council they found hardest: registering with a GP, booking a dentist and handling a health scare on their own.

The films were made with students at MidKent College. Medway Council announced the project’s completion on 29 September, and said the videos have already travelled well beyond Medway.

How it started

The project began in September 2024. It was a response to children in care reporting that they struggled to understand and use health services in Medway, the council said.

More than 60 students have taken part. The council’s Child Health Partnership Commissioning team ran it with MidKent College. The Young Lives Foundation, a Kent charity, worked with both so that care leavers were involved at every stage, from picking the ideas to editing the finished films.

The first video, on registering with a GP, came out in September 2025.

The five videos

These are the care leavers’ support videos on Medway Council’s YouTube channel:

Who is using them

According to the council, the videos have been shared by nine NHS Integrated Care Boards. They are also used in education and in special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) networks, and by the national care leavers’ charity Become.

One care leaver told the council they usually “struggle to retain information”. They said the videos were a “really helpful” alternative to searching online on their own.

The students gained something too. The council said one of them partly credits the project with helping them land a full-time job.

Cllr Adam Price, the council’s portfolio holder for children’s services, said the care leavers “have produced some outstanding work that will benefit future care leavers”. He thanked the commissioning team and the MidKent College staff and students.

What it means for you

If you are a care leaver in Medway, or you support one, the videos are free to watch and each takes a few minutes. Health help does not stop there. Medway’s Local Offer for care leavers sets out what the council provides, and its health page says a personal adviser can help with:

  • registering with a GP and a dentist
  • getting free prescriptions and dental care
  • moving from children’s mental health services (CAMHS) to adult services
  • finding local counselling, sexual health clinics and drop-in centres

The Care Leavers Hub is at the Elaine Centre, Clifton Close, Strood, ME2 2HG, inside Strood Children and Family Hub. You can meet a personal adviser there, and use the washing machine, shower or kitchen if you check first that nobody else is using them. There is also a sofa and a pool table if you just need somewhere to go for a while.

If your own adviser is away, the leaving care duty worker is on 01634 335 681, Monday to Friday, 9am to 5pm, or at 16plus.duty@medway.gov.uk. Out of hours, at weekends and on bank holidays, the number is 03000 419 191.

Medway’s money page for care leavers also lists a £3,000 setting up home allowance for furniture and essentials. It offers help with costs such as rent, education and driving lessons too.

For wider health and wellbeing services, the same page points to A Better Medway. Our Thrive from 55 story covers the council’s next health event, at Medway Park on 13 October.

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