Jenn Pitt, from Teesside, secured her place to study at York this autumn while juggling illness, family trauma and homelessness.
Alongside her A-levels, Pitt struggled with immense social difficulties over the course of her sixth-form years, working hard to keep her ambitions on track. Her problems began when she fell out with her father over going out with friends and having a serious boyfriend.
Problems then escalated shortly before her AS-level exams in the summer of 2010 and Pitt was kicked out of her house, forbidden even from returning to collect books, revision notes or clothes. After crashing on her friends’ floors, Pitt eventually had to move into a support house for young homeless people.
Speaking exclusively to Vision, Pitt says it was difficult to keep up with her work: “It was mainly just the concentration, trying to focus on my work whilst worrying about things at home, or where I’d be staying that night, or how I was going to get food the next day. I didn’t really have much time on the nights to focus on homework etc., as I would be trying to get somewhere more permanent sorted to live, but I managed to keep up!”
Pitt described life in the support home as “horrible”, although went on to explain that “the staff working there were very supportive, and helped as much as they could,” and that she “was grateful for a roof over [her] head and a place to have a shower.” She says staff prepared her for living on her own and helped her to manage her finances as well as to cope emotionally.
With aspirations of becoming a barrister, Pitt has wanted to study Law for most of her school years. She says that everything that has happened to her has only fuelled her ambitions: “it made me hate injustice, and I guess [studying] Law was the natural way to do something about that.”
York was always Pitt’s first choice and, after passing her interview, she confirmed her offer. She loves the course plan, commenting that at open day, “everyone seemed so friendly and welcoming.” Unfortunately, Pitt will have to miss Freshers Week as she is under strict doctor’s orders to spend some time recovering from a major operation she had last week.
Despite the surgery Jenn is extremely excited to get stuck in when she arrives. She’s a keen hockey player and is hoping to “get involved with as much as [she] can, and really take advantage of all the opportunities.”
Pitt says life is finally starting to look up now: “I’m engaged, and my fiancé is my absolute rock; I couldn’t be happier. I’ve recently got in touch with my mum and sister who I hadn’t seen since I was seven, and I’m working towards the future I’ve always wanted.”
Pitt advises that anyone going through a similar stage in their life should “not suffer in silence. Deep down you know what is right and wrong, so don’t let anyone else convince you otherwise. If you’re not happy, then there’s only you that can do something about it, you have a life just like anyone else does and you deserve to be able to live it.”