Sidekin — help care leavers actually get set up

The problem

Councils inform care leavers. Almost no-one helps them do it.

A Pathway Plan, a Personal Adviser, a local-offer app — all real, all useful, all about giving information. Then a young person sits alone with a benefits form, a debt letter and a pile of paperwork, and no idea how to start.

86%

of care leavers say leaving care felt like being pushed off a cliff, not eased into independence.*

£26k+

the rough cost to the public purse of a single young person tipping into homelessness.*

Hours

of Personal-Adviser time lost each week doing admin *for* young people instead of *with* them.

The gap isn't a lack of information. It's being handed the paperwork with no-one to do it with you — the benefits claim, the debt letter, the bank account, the GP sign-up.

How it works

One tool. Three jobs: Guide. Do. Prove.

01 — Guide

One thing on the screen. Never a scary list.

Sidekin shows a young person a single task at a time, in plain words they can follow — with a button that reads every screen aloud and text they can make bigger. Built to work even with a learning disability or low literacy.

Read-aloud voiceBigger textPlain language

↑Sidekin

Do just this one

✉️

Sort a scary letter about money

You are not in trouble. We'll do this together.

Start →

🔊 Read to me

↑Sidekin

Step 2 of 5

Find these three things

👤 Who sent it
💷 How much they want
📅 The day to reply by

Example: Sofa Co · £240 · reply by 14 Oct

02 — Do

Not "here's a leaflet." Actually doing it, together.

Each task becomes a short, guided flow with real examples and ready-to-use templates — a draft debt letter to copy, a message to send a Personal Adviser, the exact three things to find on a bill. Step by step, with reassurance built in.

BenefitsDebt lettersBank accountCouncil taxGP & dentist

03 — Prove

Their progress becomes your evidence.

As young people complete tasks, the leaving-care team sees who's set up and who needs a hand — a live record for the Pathway Plan and for Ofsted. You stop guessing whether a young person is really ready, and you can show that you prepared them.

Pathway Plan evidenceOfsted-readyLess PA admin

↑Sidekin

Jordan's set-up

9 of 15 done · on track

✓ Universal Credit ✓ Bank account
✓ GP registered ○ Debt letter (in progress)

Who it's for

One tool. Two people it works for.

The young person

Simple. Kind. One thing at a time.

✓The screen shows one small step, never a scary list.
✓Plain, warm words — and a button that reads it aloud.
✓Reassurance built in, and one tap to reach their worker when stuck.

The local authority

Less firefighting. Real evidence.

✓Less Personal-Adviser time lost to admin.
✓A clear record you prepared them — ready for inspection.
✓Fewer young people reaching crisis and homelessness.

Why councils act now

The duty is yours. So is the cost when it goes wrong.

⚖️

A statutory duty

As corporate parents you must support care leavers to 25 (Children & Social Work Act 2017) — including preparing them for independence.

🔍

Ofsted is watching

Care-leaver outcomes are judged directly. You need to show you prepared young people — not just that you offered information.

📅

New duties from 30 Sep 2026

The strengthened care-leaver "local offer" raises the bar on what you provide and how you evidence it.

💷

Crisis costs more

One care leaver in homelessness costs far more than a licence. Getting set-up right is cheaper than picking up the pieces.

The pilot

Start small. Prove it. Then scale.

One team

We start with a single leaving-care team and a small group of young people — no big rollout, no risk.

Real tasks

Young people use Sidekin for their actual set-up — benefits, a debt letter, a bank account, a GP.

Measured

We measure tasks completed and Personal-Adviser time saved against how it works today, then decide together.

Care leavers don't fail because no-one told them.
They fail because no-one showed them how.

Councils inform care leavers. Almost no-one helps them do it.

One tool. Three jobs: Guide. Do. Prove.

One thing on the screen. Never a scary list.

Not "here's a leaflet." Actually doing it, together.

Their progress becomes your evidence.

One tool. Two people it works for.

Simple. Kind. One thing at a time.

Less firefighting. Real evidence.

The duty is yours. So is the cost when it goes wrong.

A statutory duty

Ofsted is watching

New duties from 30 Sep 2026

Crisis costs more

Start small. Prove it. Then scale.

One team

Real tasks

Measured

Ready to help your care leavers actually get set up?