Everyone has a story. Apprentice hair stylist Natalie Appiah reflects on her life in care. Interview by Nicola Baird.
Natalie Appiah: “I’ve had my ups and down but I’m very passionate about Islington.” (c) Islington Faces
“I’m a care leaver,” says Natalie Appiah as we start this interview. This confident young woman had already impressed Islington Faces at the hair salon where she works. Now 24, she’s happy to talk about her secondary school years during which she was moved between foster families, schools and even boroughs. Natalie’s colleagues at Chaps & Dames, who have been working with her for a year, and suggested Islington Faces do this interview, overheard the interview and seem quite stunned. Clearly Natalie’s not mentioned this important part of her life to them while busy learning the hair stylist’s trade.
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Natalie, 24, is proud to be, “born and raised in Islington. I feel quite fortunate that I was placed in Islington when I see people from other boroughs. Islington kids get a lot more support. Even now, because I’m a care leaver, my social worker supports me in finding the funds for books and scissors for my course.”
Natalie enjoyed Laycock Primary School and then went to Islington Arts and Media. But aged just 12 life changed dramatically. “I went into care in Year 8 and then had 10-11 different foster parents living everywhere, from Edmonton to Essex.”
The night before she moved to Year 8 and started at Highbury Fields School, Natalie was taken into foster care. “At school I was angry and not listening to teachers. In retrospect I see I had a lot going on and built up anger and resentment. One teacher, Ms Chambers, was very supportive. She’d see past my emotion. If I was angry, or having a bad day, she’d let me sit in her office.”
Unfortunately, Natalie was excluded from school in Year 10. “I went to Westminster Kingsway but ended up leaving because I was moving foster places so often. They put me with foster parents who were really mean, or wanted me to smoke with them or were really religious and I’m not. It was pretty unsettled. Then, when I was living in Lewisham with a foster carer that I really liked, social services moved me because I was 16. They wanted to put me in a hostel in Enfield. These hostels are not nice places. They forcibly removed me; me and my foster mum were crying… But then I went to a centre for semi-independent living in Palmers Green from 16-18.”
The good news is that Natalie is now in her own flat.“It took me a few years to get the knack of being an adult and paying bills! I knew how to cook and have a cheffing diploma. I knew how to clean too, my mum taught me,” says Natalie who was planning to make a dinner of pasta, pesto, garlic bread and a salad on the side after work that Wednesday evening, although she also enjoys making dishes like beef lasagne and jollof rice.
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Places Natalie loves in Islington
- Highbury Fields (the park) – I’ve got lots of naughty teenage memories. It’s a lovely place.
- I like the Angel Central Vue. It was one of the first cinemas I ever went to.
- The Angel shopping centre is good.
- I volunteered at Freightliners Farm and did all sorts: working in the café baking cakes and looking after the pigs and sheep. I remember reading Vogueand seeing a pig modelling diamonds and I said “I recognise that pig!”
- I like going to the organic fruit and vegetable shop on Stroud Green Road. They’re friendly and it’s reasonably priced. There’s a huge range of foods including fruit I’ve seen in Ghana.
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Apprenticeship
“I’ve always liked hair salons and want to do a profession I enjoy,” explains Natalie on a short break from sweeping, sorting and organising the salon. Natalie is a force of friendly energy who actually began volunteering at Chaps and Dames before moving on to an apprenticeship. As a result she works at the salon at the same time as studying for the NVQ Level 2 in Hairdressing & Barbering with the London Hair Academy in Camden.
It’s clear that Natalie has been exposed to life experiences that aren’t always comfortable. To protect herself she’s made herself homeless while in care and believes that children-in-care need much more support as they make the move to independent living. It’s tough for anyone facing bills, budgeting and dealing with the loneliness of living solo in your own place but especially hard if you’ve never been given the skills to cope.
That’s why Natalie relishes giving talks to young care leavers. “I learnt my lessons, but I think it’s nice to learn from hearing other people’s mistakes. I tell 18-year-olds things that they can take forward to make their independence process easier. I talk about paying bills and being prepared – like finding the right energy tariff and living within your means. Also, don’t let locals come into your home and turn it into a trap house – before you know they’re selling drugs out of your house and telling you to ‘shut it’, in your own house!”
Asked if she had anything else to say, Natalie was clear that she’s worried about the effect Universal Credit is having on people. “I know single mums who are really struggling and I’m worried that friends who have mental health problems will end up killing themselves from the financial strain,” she says. And like many Londoners she says “knife crime really bothers me. I’ve witnessed two phone muggings and a relative was almost killed.”
Despite all that has happened to her it is clear that Natalie is a huge fan of Islington. She’s also a Jeremy Corbyn fan, meeting him recently at her friend’s dad’s funeral. “He’s a fantastic MP for this borough.”
The teenage years are often tough, but they are invariably much harder if you are a looked after child. Islington Faces loved meeting Natalie: it’s clear that she’s overcome all sorts. Here’s hoping that she is now well on the way to qualifying in a career that she will love.
- Choices at Caxton House Community Centre, 129 St John’s Way, N19 3RQ, email info@choiceslondoncic.com or tel: 0207 281 6428 can help people who are affected by Universal Credit or need help with their online application or some 1-2-1 support.
- For a fabulous hair cut go to Chaps & Dames, 154 Tollington Park, N4.
Over to you
If you’d like to nominate someone to be interviewed who grew up, lives or works in Islington, or suggest yourself, please let me know, via nicolabaird dot green at gmail dot com. If you enjoyed this post you might like to look at the A-Z index, or search by interviewee’s roles or Meet Islingtonians to find friends, neighbours and inspiration. Thanks for stopping by. Nicola
