It is shocking that although just one per cent of children are taken into care by local authori-ties, almost 30 per cent of prisoners have been in care. Ben Ashcroft's heart-rending account of abandonment, loneliness and rejection in family life, the care system and beyond begins at age nine and ends with him turning his life around after being moved from pillar to post, crime, drugs, 'going missing' and custody. Ten years on, he works to motivate young people from similar backgrounds to believe that they can do the same; that whatever life throws at them they should "Never, ever, give up".

It is also a warning to parents, professionals and carers alike: to listen to what young people have to say, to make time for and reassure them and to recog-nise the often small but important things that make a difference in the bewildering world of growing-up.