Our Impact

Since beginning in 2014, we have:

  • provided long term therapeutic support to more than 850 children and families

  • provided preventative mental health support to over 1500 children

  • provided training placements for over 20 therapists and social workers

This academic year (2022 - 2023), our support has reached 350 children and families including:

  • 69% of children who were eligible for free school meals, and in the Moon Project 81% of children who were eligible for free school meals

  • 56% of children with Special Educational Needs and/or Disabilities (SEND)

Our support has had a positive impact on children and families, improving wellbeing, reducing symptoms of trauma, increasing school attendance and engagement, and supporting families to live in safe homes where children can thrive.

Click here to download our research report amplifying the voices of children who have accessed our services!

Click here to download our new impact report!

  • "You helped me to keep it together when I didn’t know what to do and where to turn. You all were my saving grace in times of huge distress and difficulty and when I was not able to find someone to hear my concerns. You give people hope and a place to belong."

    Parent

  • “The support from your project is invaluable and has been extremely supportive for a range of our children.”

    SENCO

  • “This was an amazing service, it really filled a gap for us as a school.”

    Headteachers

  • “It helps me get through life.”

    Child

  • “The relationship between my child and her therapist was wonderful.”

    Parent

  • “There are no words, I just didn’t know that kind of support was out there. When my Cambridge Acorn Project practitioner first approached me to discuss therapy, I did not feel I could do it, but I can, and I am finding the calls really helpful.”

    Parents

  • “It helps because someone knew about my feelings and I could trust her.”

    Child

  • “We talk about my worries. And when I’ve told her she gives back good feedback and I actually feel more happy”

    Child

Read this anonymised case study to learn more about how our services support children.

Ben, aged 13, had 6 months of the Tetris intervention, albeit some of it disrupted by COVID. When he joined the project at the end of Year 7, Ben reported low mood, disruptive behaviour, anxiety.

School reported that they were considering beginning an EHCP application as he was quite far behind academically, struggled to engage and was exhibiting a lot of negative behaviour.

From the early days, Ben engaged well with the intervention and seemed to look forward to sessions. Ben picked up the game quickly and began to score higher and higher points when playing Tetris – this seemed to benefit his self-esteem.He started to become more interested in why he was referred and began to report that playing the game took his mind off things and reduced his anxiety.

School also reported a high level of engagement – Ben would frequently attend the pastoral support office at the school and ask when his Tetris session was to ensure that he did not miss it. His Subjective Units of Distress Scales (SUDS) scores frequently decreased from the beginning to the end of session, indicating that his distress was, in fact, reducing through playing the game.

By the end of the intervention Ben reported he was feeling happier, was concentrating more in class, was beginning to understand more in class because he was paying attention. He was getting fewer detentions and getting more positive behaviour points and feedback from teachers and school staff.

School reported ”Ben is achieving a huge increase in positives and is not trying to hang around out of lessons as he did last year. He is better able to articulate his worries and is not exhibiting the anger outbursts that were so frequent last year. He is also more open and trusting of adults, comes to talk quite willingly and appears happier".

As evidence of this, between September and mid-December, Ben achieved 48 positive behaviour points, as many as he did for the previous entire academic year.