About Me
My name is Kieran Jones. I am from Shropshire and I have an autism diagnosis, as well as mental health difficulties including anxiety and depression.
I am sharing my story because I hope that my experiences can inspire other young people and help drive positive change for people like me across the UK.
“Take every opportunity that comes to you, you never know where it will lead you.”
My journey has certainly not been straightforward. There have been periods when education, employment and life felt completely overwhelming, and there were times when I genuinely thought my education, my future and my chances of working were over.
But my story is also about what can happen when the right people believe in you, when you are given the right support and when you are given an opportunity to demonstrate what you can do.
My journey from struggling at school to becoming a supported intern, apprentice, award winner, Expert by Experience and professional working in local government has shown me that a difficult beginning does not have to determine the rest of your life.
At the 2024 Apprenticeship Awards
Early School Years: Primary School: 2005 – 2012
I started school in 2005 when I was five years old. At that point, I was just an ordinary five-year-old. I behaved well in class, worked hard in my subjects and made new friends. School initially went very well and I continued to achieve important milestones throughout my early years.
Things changed when I reached Year 5, when I was around ten years old. My teacher went on long-term sick leave and we had a succession of different supply teachers. I found all of this change extremely difficult to cope with.
“I needed stability and the opportunity to build a relationship with someone I knew and trusted.”
This was when we began to realise that there was something different and unique about me. I needed consistency. I needed stability and the opportunity to build a relationship with someone I knew and trusted.
I therefore moved into another class where there was a permanent teacher. Fortunately, that teacher was also the school’s SENCO. She recognised that there was a possibility that I could be autistic.
She spoke with my parents and the autism assessment process began. I was referred into CAMHS and, around twelve months later, received a full assessment and was diagnosed as autistic.
Once I received the support I needed, things improved considerably and I went on to pass my SATs with flying colours.
Secondary School: 2012 – 2017
When I moved to secondary school, I did not have an EHCP.
My transition into secondary school was initially very positive. I settled in well and managed my first two years successfully, so we believed that perhaps I had reached a point where I might not need an EHCP.
“Unfortunately, when I reached Year 9 at fourteen years old, things changed dramatically; this was when bullying began at school.”
At the same time, the pressure surrounding my GCSEs was beginning to build. The combination of bullying, academic pressure and everything else I was experiencing made the final years of secondary school an absolute nightmare for me, my friends and my family.
During this period I was diagnosed with anxiety and depression. I received a sick note allowing me to have two weeks away from school so that I could try to recover and get myself back on track. I also started taking medication.
By this point, however, my anxiety had become so severe that the medication did not really begin to have the desired effect until around two years later, after I had left school and had the opportunity to make a fresh start.
During my final three years of secondary school, things became increasingly difficult. I began going missing from home. I experienced violent outbursts and increasingly isolated myself in my bedroom because I did not want to go outside and face people.
Eventually, because of my low school attendance and the other difficulties I was experiencing, I received support involving the police to obtain a social worker assessment. My family and I also had to go privately to obtain my EHCP and a psychology assessment.
When I finally received my EHCP, however, the school did not honour it. I did not receive the support that I needed or the support that was specified in my EHCP.
“This period had a huge impact on me. It showed me how important the right support is – and also what can happen when that support is not provided.”
College: 2017 – 2019
When I went to college in 2017, things initially started to look much more positive.
I began making friends, successfully completed my college course and experienced far fewer problems than I had experienced at school. For a while, it felt as though life was beginning to move in the right direction.
Unfortunately, in April 2018, the CAMHS consultant took me off my medication. Things quickly went back to how they had been. I started going missing again, experienced violent outbursts and spent increasing amounts of time in my bedroom.
“I felt as though I was back at square one and experiencing the same feelings I had experienced during school.”
I felt as though I was back at square one and experiencing the same feelings I had experienced during school. This time, things became even more serious. I was hospitalised following self-harm and subsequently moved to a mental health unit in Stoke for three months during the summer holidays.
I later tried to return to college in September 2018 and again in September 2019. Despite being back on my medication, I could not cope with returning to college after everything that had happened.
As a result, I left my college course twice over a two-year period and had a two-year gap from education. At this stage, I genuinely thought that my education was over.
“I thought my life was over.”
I thought my chances of working were over. I could not see where my future was going to come from.
Then, in June 2020, everything began to change.
The Turning Point: COVID-19 Lockdown
The COVID-19 lockdown turned out to be one of the biggest turning points in my life. For me, the lockdown gave me something I desperately needed: time.
My family were at home with me all the time, and I was able to rest and recover with them. I began going on walks with the dog every day. It was the best I had felt since I was fourteen years old in 2014. I genuinely could not remember the last time I had felt so well.
“The lockdown gave me an opportunity to recover from everything that had happened and start thinking about what I might be able to do with my future.”
In June 2020, I contacted Early Help in Shropshire. They talked me through my education and career options and suggested that I attend County Training for twelve months. The purpose was to develop my employability skills and functional skills English.
This was the beginning of a completely different chapter of my life.
County Training And My Supported Internship
I started County Training in September 2020. This was where I first met an Employability Officer from Enable. Meeting that person turned out to be one of the most important moments of my life; I was offered the opportunity to undertake a Supported Internship.
When I was asked what career I wanted, I said that I wanted to work in Business Administration. That Supported Internship became the route into my career in local government. For the first time, I found a career where I could genuinely imagine myself having a future.
“It gave me confidence.”
I completed my Supported Internship with the Affordable Housing and Planning Policy Team at Shropshire Council. During this period I also passed my Functional Skills English and Employability Skills. I was also incredibly proud to become the North Shropshire College Student of the Year.
The Supported Internship gave me the opportunity to demonstrate that I was capable of working and contributing to a team.
It gave me confidence.
It gave me experience.
Most importantly, it gave me hope.
The Supported Internship was one of the best decisions and opportunities that had ever been presented to me. When I finished County Training and my Supported Internship, I initially thought I was back at square one. I had finished my education and was once again wondering what I was going to do next. My line manager asked me what my next steps were.
“County Training taught me that the right people can change everything, but the Supported Internship taught me that I was capable of more than I ever believed.”
I said that I did not know and that I would either have to look for a job or an apprenticeship. Then my manager gave me news that would change the direction of my life. He said that he could look into whether I could undertake an apprenticeship with the team. I immediately said yes. I was delighted and extremely grateful.
The opportunity meant that the Supported Internship had not simply been a placement – it had opened the door to my career.
My Apprenticeship With Shropshire Council
In February 2022, I began my apprenticeship with Shropshire Council.
The Supported Internship had given me the opportunity to prove myself within the team, and the apprenticeship was the best possible next step. I undertook the apprenticeship from February 2022 until December 2023.
Because I already knew the team and understood how it worked, I entered the apprenticeship with more confidence than I had ever previously had going into education. I learnt a huge number of new skills. I developed my administrative abilities, gained workplace experience and continued building my confidence.
“After everything I had experienced in education, this was an enormous achievement.”
The apprenticeship did have a difficult start, including some problems involving the training provider, but eventually everything got properly underway.
Alongside my apprenticeship, I also attended night classes to resit my GCSE English. I successfully passed my GCSE English. The two published versions of my story record different grades – one records a grade 5 and the other a grade 6 – but both confirm that I successfully achieved the qualification.
In December 2023, I sat my end-point assessment. I felt that it went extremely well. I answered the questions confidently and was able to demonstrate through my portfolio just how much I had developed. It was the most confident I had ever felt coming out of an exam-based situation. I left believing that I had at least achieved a pass.
Then, in January 2024, I received my results. I had achieved a Distinction. I received my certificate and a congratulatory phone call from my training provider. After everything I had experienced in education, this was an enormous achievement.
Becoming An Expert By Experience With Enable
In April 2022, while I was completing my apprenticeship, I also joined Enable as an Expert by Experience. I worked on the Supported Internship Grant Project. This project has always meant a huge amount to me because I understand personally what a Supported Internship can do.
“…I love the possibility of helping to change somebody’s life.”
I came into Shropshire Council through a Supported Internship, so I know exactly how significant that opportunity can be for someone who has struggled with education and employment. My role allowed me to help improve awareness of Supported Internships across Shropshire and contribute my own experience to the project.
I am proud to continue in this role. The thing that motivates me most is knowing that the project can help people who are in the same position that I was in several years ago. I am particularly happy that I can give something back to Shropshire Council. But, above all, I love the possibility of helping to change somebody’s life.
If I could change the life of just one person in Shropshire, that would make me incredibly happy. I also really value the people I work with. I feel supported and valued within the team. I feel that my ideas are listened to, taken seriously and sometimes implemented. That makes me feel that I have genuinely contributed and helped move the project forward.
I look forward to seeing what the future of the project brings.The work has allowed me to turn some of the difficult experiences from my own life into something positive for other young people.
Moving Into The Programme Management Office
In February 2024, I faced another small setback. My line manager offered me a three-day-a-week contract with his team. I was incredibly grateful that he wanted to keep me and, normally, I would have accepted any opportunity that came my way.
However, this time I needed to think about my own future. I explained that it was a very generous offer and that normally I would have accepted it. But I felt that I had reached the point where it was time to take another step forward in my life and career.
“I therefore realised that it was time for me to move on and find another opportunity.”
I wanted to work five days a week and finally move into full-time employment. Unfortunately, for several reasons, my existing line manager was unable to offer me those five days. I therefore realised that it was time for me to move on and find another opportunity.
Fortunately, the Programme Management Office at Shropshire Council was recruiting for a Project Support Officer. I read the job description and person specification and decided that I would be foolish not to apply.
I was successful. By April 2024, I had begun my induction into the PMO team. This allowed me to develop my career even further. I learned project-management skills and continued developing my administrative skills by learning from colleagues and working alongside them.
My plan was to undertake a Level 4 Apprenticeship in Project Management. Unfortunately, things did not work out as I had hoped. Because I was employed on a twelve-month fixed-term contract, I was unable to undertake the Level 4 apprenticeship in the near future.
That was disappointing and represented another setback. However, rather than giving up, I decided to stay in the role and see what the future would bring once the twelve months were over.
My Apprenticeship Awards
While I was working in the PMO, I received some incredible news.
I had been nominated for two apprenticeship awards based on the apprenticeship I had completed in my previous team. I attended the Shropshire, Telford & Wrekin Apprenticeship Awards ceremony in October 2024. I took my family with me, along with colleagues – both old and new – from Shropshire Council.
It was an amazing evening. Then came the biggest surprise.
“I won both awards.”
I became the winner of Apprentice of the Year for Business, Legal and Finance and Apprentice of the Year for Shropshire.These remain two of my biggest achievements.
Considering everything that had happened earlier in my education and life, receiving those awards meant an enormous amount to me.They were recognition not only of the apprenticeship itself, but of how far I had travelled to get there.
National Supported Internship Event And SEND Youth Parliament
In February 2025, I was invited to speak at the National Supported Internship event hosted by NDTi. This involved travelling to London. Being invited to speak about my experiences was a huge opportunity. I then applied for the SEND Youth Parliament 2025.
In May 2025, I travelled back to London to attend the event at Portcullis House. The event was an amazing experience. I learned a huge amount and had the opportunity to speak to Members of Parliament as part of the group. I was also able to answer some of their questions.
“For someone who had once struggled so badly with education, attendance, bullying and confidence that I believed my future was over, standing in London and contributing to discussions about SEND was an incredibly important milestone.”
My experiences had gone from something I once felt ashamed and overwhelmed by to something I could use to influence change.
Moving Into WMADASS
In April 2025, I received news that my PMO contract was going to be extended for another six months, taking me through to September 2025. I was pleased with the extension and accepted it.
However, I knew that if I wanted to undertake another apprenticeship and continue progressing my career, I might have to consider another move.
In June 2025, I applied for a Programme Support Officer position with the West Midlands Association of Directors of Adult Social Services – WMADASS.
I was interviewed and was successful.
I started working in the WMADASS team.
“This represented another major stage in my career.”
As of February 2026, I remain in the role and am thoroughly enjoying it. Although I had not yet started my next apprenticeship, I remained hopeful that I would be able to do so in the future.
My ambition was – and remains – to continue developing my career, building my skills and working my way up within WMADASS. My journey has therefore continued far beyond the Supported Internship that first gave me my opportunity.
Expert By Experience And Giving Something Back
One of the things I am most proud of is that I have been able to use my own experiences to help other people.
My experience of autism, mental health difficulties, bullying, inadequate support, struggling with education, leaving college, having a break from education and eventually finding the right route into employment gives me a perspective that cannot simply be learned from a textbook.
“I know what it feels like to believe that your future is over.”
I also know what it feels like when somebody gives you an opportunity and believes that you can do something. That is why the Supported Internship Grant Project means so much to me.
I want other young people to have the opportunities that I eventually received. I want people to understand that a young person struggling at school does not mean that they cannot succeed later. I want employers and education providers to understand the difference that appropriate support can make.
And I want young people themselves to know that their current circumstances do not necessarily determine where they will end up.
Where I Am Now
Looking back at my journey, there is a huge contrast between where I was as a teenager and where I am today. At school, I experienced bullying, anxiety, depression, isolation and difficulties with attendance. I struggled so badly that I went missing from home, experienced violent outbursts and spent long periods isolated in my bedroom.
“COVID lockdown gave me time to recover.”
I had to obtain additional assessments and support privately, and even after receiving an EHCP, I did not receive the support that I needed. College initially gave me hope, but I subsequently struggled again, was hospitalised following self-harm and spent three months in a mental health unit.
I left college twice and had a two-year gap in education. At one point I genuinely believed that my education, my life and my chances of working were over – but they weren’t.
COVID lockdown gave me time to recover.
Early Help helped me identify a new route.
County Training helped me develop.
Enable introduced me to Supported Internships.
The Supported Internship gave me an opportunity. Shropshire Council gave me an apprenticeship. My apprenticeship gave me qualifications, confidence and professional experience. My Expert by Experience role allowed me to give something back. The PMO allowed me to develop my project and administrative skills. Winning two apprenticeship awards showed me just how far I had come.
Speaking at national events and participating in SEND Youth Parliament allowed me to use my experiences to influence wider conversations. And my role with WMADASS has allowed me to continue developing my professional career.
I am still ambitious.
I still want to learn.
I still want to develop my career.
I still hope to undertake further apprenticeship training and continue progressing professionally.
Most importantly, I want to continue showing other young people what can be possible when the right support, opportunity and belief come together.
My Words Of Wisdom To Other Young People
Supported Internships are definitely worthwhile. A Supported Internship is what helped me get where I am today, and I would highly recommend them to other young people.
“Never give up when life feels bad.”
Keep trying and keep persevering with education and work. It may take longer than you expected and you may have setbacks along the way, but continuing to try can eventually lead you towards something you really want to do.
There is nothing to be ashamed of in needing a break. Sometimes you need time away from education, work or other pressures in order to recover. Taking a break does not mean that your future is over.
Work hard and you will get what you want in life.
This is something a wise person once told me, and it is something I expect will stay with me for the rest of my life.
“Take every opportunity that comes your way.”
You never know where an opportunity might lead. The Supported Internship was an opportunity that changed the direction of my life. Belief and opportunity can change a life. Someone believing in you at the right moment can make a huge difference.
When young people are supported properly, they can thrive. The right support can unlock abilities that might otherwise remain hidden. A Supported Internship can give someone the chance to rewrite their future. That is what happened to me.
Your voice can change a life for the good, but bullying can affect a life for years. I know from personal experience how damaging bullying can be. I also know how powerful it can be when someone listens to you, believes in you and gives you a genuine opportunity.
My Final Message
My story is not a story about somebody who had an easy journey. It is a story about somebody who struggled. It is a story about autism, anxiety, depression, bullying, education, mental health, setbacks, hospitalisation and feeling as though there was no future.
But it is also a story about family, support, opportunity, determination, education, employment, confidence, achievement and giving something back. I went from being a young person who struggled enormously in education to becoming a successful apprentice.
I went from believing that I would never work to building a career in local government. I went from struggling to have my needs understood to becoming an Expert by Experience and using my voice to help improve opportunities for other young people.
I went from feeling that my future was over to travelling to London to speak at national events and participating in SEND Youth Parliament. And my journey is still continuing.
I do not know exactly where the next chapter will take me.
But I do know one thing:
“Never underestimate what can happen when somebody is given the opportunity to show what they can do.”
My Supported Internship changed my future.
I hope that by sharing my story, I can help change somebody else’s.
