Active Wales Award

Lael Heaney, was brought up in a difficult, and sometimes unhappy environment that didn’t encourage her to pursue an education. When she was 16, she started rebelling, “I wasn’t doing awful things, but I felt as if I’d been kept in a box for so long.”After her 18th birthday, she moved out of the family home and into a flat with friends: “I had to learn how to be me. I felt suffocated by everything I’d ever known. I felt as if I hadn’t been able to think for myself.” At 21, she decided to return home and shortly afterwards, she met her husband. She was married for five years when past trauma began to resurface and contributed to the breakdown of her marriage. She said: “It got so bad that I couldn’t even make a cup of tea – I didn’t know how. The mental health team visited, and they were amazing.”

She moved on and met a new partner, but the relationship was difficult and didn’t have the happy ending she was looking for. She decided to take control of her future and this was a turning point for Lael. In all this time, her education had taken a back seat. “School was a disaster. I had so many hopes and dreams, but further education was not encouraged in my upbringing. I was also dyslexic which made learning more challenging. I had always been a stay-at-home mum.”
Having joined a women’s gym to keep fit and to meet other people, she started training to become a fitness instructor and discovered St Giles Trust which works across Wales to help people overcome barriers and get the support they need to move forward with their lives. “Joining the gym helped improve my mental wellbeing, as well as my physical fitness. I’ve completed a Mental Health First Aid qualification. I’ve done the Wellbeing course with ‘Empower – Be The Change’, the ‘Learning to Advise’ assured course and I’m also completing my NVQ Level 3 in Advice and Guidance.”

Lael now works in the gym and has created a centre where she can provide guidance and support to women on a range of subjects such as domestic abuse or financial difficulties. “For somebody who had no support,” says Lael. “Learning has given me confidence and has shown me that you can have a dream and turn it into a reality. You can make a bad situation into a positive.” Lisa Owen, from St Giles Trust, says, “I knew from the minute I met Lael that she was an incredible individual who can inspire others. It is clear from the work she is doing she is going to make such a difference to the individuals she works with in the future.”