EMMA CURRY
ACHEERLEADING nursery nurse from Cale Green has been recognised for her achievements at an awards ceremony for foster children.
Former Cheadle Hulme High School and Sixth Form student Jessica Vellino-Woodall has won the Outstanding Achievement Award at The Fostering Network’s annual Fostering Excellence Awards.
She was 14 years old when she entered the local authority foster care system, after her situation at home with her mum became too challenging.
Staying with foster carers allowed Jess, who now lives on Adswood Terrace, Cale Green, and works at Glen Jakes Nursery, to pursue her ambitions of volunteering in an orphanage in Peru, working as an au pair and teaching English to children in China.
Jessica also continued her hobby of cheerlead- ing, which she got into through joining an afterschool club.
As well as working as an Early Years practitioner and studying for a degree in childhood studies, Jessica has competed in both the European and World Cheerleading Championships.
She has spoken at the Greater Manchester Care Leavers Awards and won the regional You Can Foster Inspired Stories competition with her entry, Dear Diary.
Working with Stockport council, Jess also helped to raise awareness of her fostering journey. Her award was one of 21 presented at a ceremony at Draper’s Hall in London.
Ruth McDonald, Jess’ personal advisor on the leaving care team, who nominated her for the award, said: “Jess is inspirational. She is an ambitious, resilient and caring young woman.
“She should be proud of her achievements.”
Jessica said: “Since being in foster care I have gained more belief in myself and what I can achieve, I’ve reached and pushed so many new boundaries.
“Cheerleading in a way saved me, it brought me off the streets and kept me safe and it gave me a sense of competitiveness and motivation.
“I’ve loved travelling the world with cheerleading, I’ve had competitions in Japan, Croatia and Slovenia in both European and world championships – seeing the level of cheerleading in those countries has been inspiring in my athletic journey.”
Kevin Williams, chief executive of The Fostering Network, said: “Jessica has excelled at a huge variety of pursuits and shown great generosity and community spirit in doing so.”