about ADELPHI – ADULTING, TOGETHER®
Bridging support, confidence, and skills for meaningful change.
ABOUT ADELPHI
Adelphi – Adulting, Together
Adelphi – Adulting, Together® is a UK-based platform and professional services organisation supporting care-experienced young people as they move into adulthood and their next chapters.
Built from lived experience and professional leadership, Adelphi exists to bridge the gap between information and action, between systems and people, and between potential and opportunity.
Our work brings together lived experience and professional practice. It supports young people directly, while also strengthening the organisations and professionals working alongside them.
OUR STORY
Adelphi was created in response to a reality many care-experienced young people face when navigating adulthood without the informal support networks others often rely on.
For many young people, the transition out of care happens early and quickly. Support can vary depending on systems, staffing, and capacity, meaning guidance may feel fragmented, inconsistent, or difficult to rely on over time. Even where information exists, it is not always accessible, relatable, or joined up in a way that supports confident decision-making.
The name Adelphi comes from the Greek word for sibling.
It was chosen deliberately to reflect the type of support Adelphi exists to provide. Not parental, not institutional, but alongside. Support that feels steady, human, and rooted in shared understanding rather than authority.
What began as a need for clearer, more human guidance has grown into a blended approach that combines a practical digital platform with professional support delivered across settings. The Adelphi platform provides accessible, trauma-informed guidance across everyday areas of life, while Adelphi’s professional services extend this support through mentoring, training, talks, workshops, and consultancy.
This approach recognises that meaningful support must work at both individual and organisational levels. Adelphi supports young people directly, while also working with professionals, teams, and organisations to strengthen understanding, confidence, and practice.
At its core, Adelphi brings together lived experience and professional insight to create support that is consistent, respectful, and rooted in real needs. The aim is not just to provide information, but to build confidence, capability, and a sense of belonging that supports long-term independence.
Why it matters
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33,000+
Young people left care in England - often expected to live independently from as young as sixteen.
(Source: Department for Education, 2023) -
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1 in 3
Are not in education, employment or training (NEET) within 12 months of leaving care.
(Source: Department for Education, 2023)
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1 in 4
Experience homelessness or housing instability within two years of leaving care.
(Source: National Audit Office, 2023)
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≈25%
Of the adult prison population have spent time in care.
(Source: Prison Reform Trust, 2022) -
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45%
Of looked after children - and 72% in residential settings - experience a diagnosable mental health disorder.
(Source: Barnardo’s, 2022 — “Neglected Minds”) -
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Aged 16–25
Current statistics only represent care leavers who remain “in touch” with Local Authorities - meaning many young adults navigating independence go uncounted and unsupported.
(Source: Department for Education, 2023)
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Every year, thousands of young people leave care in the UK - many stepping into adulthood long before their peers.
Within twelve months, one in three are not in education, employment or training (NEET), and one in four will experience homelessness or housing instability within two years.
The Prison Reform Trust reports that around a quarter of the adult prison population have spent time in care.Behind each of these statistics is a story of transition, resilience, and the urgent need for connection and opportunity.
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Beyond those early years, care-experienced adults aged 22–25 continue to face long-term barriers - from stable housing and employment to emotional wellbeing and financial security.
The National Audit Office (2023) links many of these challenges to gaps in early life-skills education and limited ongoing guidance.For many, independence arrives suddenly and without structure. Without consistent support, even small everyday tasks can feel overwhelming - not because of a lack of ability, but often because they’ve had to learn alone.
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The Barnardo’s “Neglected Minds” report found that 45% of children in care - and 72% in residential settings - experience a diagnosable mental health disorder, compared to 1 in 10 in the general population.
These figures reveal the depth of emotional need that often goes unseen, and the importance of stable, human-centred support that feels safe and familiar.
Because when guidance works - when it feels like family - everything changes.
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It’s important to recognise that official data from the Department for Education only represents care leavers who are still “in touch” with their Local Authority.
Thousands of others fall outside those figures - often due to trauma, loss of trust in authority, or simply the realities of surviving on their own.Many disengage not because they don’t want help, but because previous systems haven’t always felt safe, consistent, or understanding.
These numbers tell a story - but so do the successes that follow when support works.
With the right connection, the right knowledge, and a sense of belonging, care-experienced young people achieve extraordinary things.
Adelphi exists to make that the rule, not the exception.
How Adelphi Works in Practice
Adelphi is designed to be flexible, recognising that no two young people, organisations, or services operate in exactly the same way.
The Adelphi platform provides a strong foundation of trauma-informed, accessible guidance that supports everyday independence. Alongside this, Adelphi offers additional services such as mentoring, training, talks, workshops, and consultancy, which can be shaped around the needs, context, and capacity of each service.
There is no single model or fixed pathway. Support may involve the platform alone, professional services alone, or a blended approach, depending on what is most appropriate and effective in each situation.
What remains consistent is Adelphi’s solution-focused approach. The aim is always to work collaboratively, reduce barriers, and support positive outcomes for young people and the wider community around them.
Adelphi works alongside people and organisations to find practical solutions, not one-size-fits-all answers.
February 2026: Introducing Drive 2 Strive
A collaboration with National Intensive Ltd & Book Instructor offering discounted learning to care-leavers.
Drive 2 Strive is a solution-led collaboration focused on improving access to driving support for care-experienced young people.
Driving can play an important role in accessing employment, education, and independence. However, cost, confidence, and availability often create barriers. Drive 2 Strive exists to help reduce those barriers by signposting clear, accessible options and working collaboratively with trusted providers for discounted access to learning.
Importantly, Drive 2 Strive does not require engagement with Adelphi services in order to access support. Partner services can be accessed independently, and the Adelphi platform and professional services can be used alongside this initiative where helpful.
Information about this initiative is also shared with UK Local Authorities and leaving care teams, who may choose to signpost or support access in line with local arrangements.
Our Team
Lived experience, professional insight, and shared vision for positive change.
Adelphi is guided by people who bring both lived experience and professional expertise into how support is designed, delivered, and governed.
bethaney dixon
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Bethaney founded Adelphi drawing on lived experience of the care system alongside professional leadership across multiple sectors, including energy, fintech, and education technology.
Her work spans mentoring, training, leadership development, and organisational consultancy, supporting teams and organisations to improve outcomes through trauma-informed, people-centred practice. Her experience includes leading, mentoring, and training teams across different industries and operating at both strategic and delivery levels.
Bethaney’s approach is grounded in clarity, empathy, and lived understanding, ensuring Adelphi’s work remains practical, respectful, and rooted in the realities young people face when navigating independence.
For more information on Bethaney’s professional work, delivery, and services, please see Professional Services.
Everton sutherland-adebiyi
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Everton is a youth voice champion with a strong passion for innovation, justice, law, and democracy, driven by the belief that every child and young person deserves to thrive, be seen, and be heard.
As Founding Advisor at Adelphi, Everton provides strategic advice on embedding lived experience, co-production, and inclusive service design. He supports partnership working across business, statutory, voluntary, and community sectors.
His experience includes public sector leadership in youth participation, advising senior leaders, working with police and probation, training and upskilling professionals, police scrutiny and advisory roles, and system-change work within children’s services. Everton is currently studying a Master’s in Law as part of his long-term legal journey to strengthen rights-based and child-centred practice.
Want to be part of what’s next?
Adelphi works alongside care-experienced young people, professionals, organisations, and partners who are committed to improving confidence, access, and long-term outcomes.
Whether you’re interested in the Adelphi platform, professional services, partnerships, or future initiatives, we’d love to hear from you.