Sylwia Juranek

Reach for a Star brings together education, personalised support and community projects to help people build confidence, independence and opportunities, while supporting organisations to improve the services they provide. Through Social Care Success Academy, we offer training and development for social care leaders, managers and providers, helping them strengthen leadership, organisational culture and service quality. Independent Living Skills Academy supports young people to develop practical life skills, confidence and greater independence as they prepare for adulthood. Missing Link provides personalised enablement for young people with SEND and adults with autism, learning disabilities, mental health needs and physical disabilities. We support transitions and turn individual aspirations into achievable steps towards greater choice and control. Our Community Projects for Women, including She Moves, create opportunities for physical activity, learning, wellbeing and connection. We engage women from diverse backgrounds, including Polish women, and address barriers to participation. What makes us different is the connection between these areas: we support individuals, strengthen the organisations around them and create communities where they can belong. Our approach starts with each person's strengths, ambitions and circumstances, bringing inclusion into practical action. Across our work, the purpose is shared: helping people shape their own futures.

Behind Reach for a Star is a dedicated community of Polish women and young volunteers aged 15 and above. They bring their time, skills, creativity and care to our projects, helping us create opportunities for women to connect, learn and become more active. Most of our work is made possible by formal volunteers and community members who help promote events, spread the word and encourage others to get involved. Their contribution helps us reach people through trusted relationships and keeps our work rooted in the community we serve. We also create paid opportunities whenever resources allow. A 16-year-old Polish young woman currently delivers our Spanish classes and is paid for her teaching. Through funding for our Activ Stars project, we can also pay a team member this year who previously volunteered with us for two years. These opportunities recognise their skills and contributions while supporting their confidence and development. Together, we create more than activities: we build relationships, encourage participation and give women and young people opportunities to contribute, take responsibility and recognise their potential. I am deeply grateful to everyone who gives their time, shares an event, brings an idea or helps someone feel welcome. Their generosity and commitment make this work possible, and every contribution matters.

My work is shaped by my lived experience of sexual abuse, domestic abuse, mental health challenges, obesity and neurodiversity. These experiences influence how I listen, lead and create opportunities for others. I moved to the UK at 21. Becoming a mother at 28 brought a new set of challenges, and today I am raising a 14-year-old teenager with SEND. My experiences as a woman, migrant and parent have deepened my commitment to making support more accessible and responsive to different needs. A turning point came when I recognised that other women in our communities were facing experiences similar to mine. I began researching mental health within the Polish community in the UK. That research led me to apply for NHS funding in Walsall, enabling me to establish the first Polish Women’s Support Group in Walsall. Taking that step meant turning personal experience into purposeful action: asking questions, building relationships and finding the resources to bring women together. It shaped the direction of my work and showed me what can become possible when we listen to our communities. Today, I run multiple community projects, including my own Pilates community and Spanish classes. I encourage women to be physically active, socially connected and to keep developing themselves. My work creates opportunities for women to invest in their wellbeing, discover interests and build supportive relationships. Alongside this, parenting a young person with SEND strengthens my determination to embed neuro-inclusive frameworks across education, care, workplaces and community services. I want systems to recognise different strengths and needs, with inclusion built into how they operate. My journey continues to shape Reach for a Star. What drives me is the opportunity to turn lived experience into practical change, so more people can access support, develop independence and shape their own futures.