Great News - you've reached the top of our waiting list and you are matched with Jack!

1. Matching your Child

We have matched your Child with Jack

Based on the form and your comments one of our mentors called Jack looks like a good fit to us. He is a fun, down to earth person and works with several of our autistic young people. Jack has a valid, enhanced DBS Check and Child Barring Service check, completed by Game Changers. He has completed safeguarding training and has completed suicide prevention and awareness training.

Here is an intro from Jack: 

Hello, I'm Jack and I am a Game Designer and Developer. I've loved videogames for quite some time now and that passion ultimately led me to choose the career path that I am currently on! Certain games I love to play would have to be Super Mario, Plants Vs Zombies and pretty much any other colourful game. When I'm not playing videogames however, I'm instead creating projects within Minecraft, Super Mario Maker, Unity and other software such as Adobe Premiere and Autodesk Maya. For example, I created a 3D platformer at college called Blaze Runner in Unity where you play as a character named Ash and his job is to get to the goal as fast as possible. To get to this speed, you need to collect logs which would increase his flame, therefore increasing his speed as a result. Other than that, I also made some smaller projects such as a project where you roll a ball down a hill and try not hit anything on the way down.

Not only have I made an actual game by myself but at the time of this bio being written, I am currently studying a degree in Computer Games Development at Staffordshire University! Therefore my skills as a game developer will only just increase as time goes on which is extremely exciting. For example, I'll be starting to use Unreal Engine soon which is great as it'll help increase my current understanding of game engines as well as C++.

Other than gaming and video editing ; I also do a lot of exercise such as jogging and circuit training. It's a great way to deplete stress and it overall is an activity I enjoy doing as it taught me a lot about discipline and how to use it within my own work. I also like going on walks and spending time with friends.

In conclusion, I really enjoy creating projects and doing exercise in my spare time as it helps hone my skills on certain aspects that I want to improve on. Not only can I create game projects but also multi media projects within software like Photoshop and Premiere so I have a lot of flexibility no matter what you want to do. Just say the word and I'll be able to help you whether it's creating a game project or creating a video for your friends to see! Thank you for reading and have a good day.

2. Next Steps:

Set-up Initial "Get to Know" Session: If everything looks OK and your Child likes Jack's video you can schedule the initial ‘get to know session’ directly in Jack's Game Changers calendar at the bottom of this page.

This session will allow your Child and Jack to discuss with voice or messaging their interests, share experiences, and possibly play a game together to break the ice. The goal is for them to agree on where to start their weekly sessions, focusing on a specific area of interest that we listed in your email/message that brought you to this page.

Jack has the ideas we sent to you. Also your Child and Jack may come up with a new joint idea during the call. That happens sometimes!

After the get to know, if you and your Child would like to proceed with further sessions with Game Changers you can agree a fixed weekly recurring time with Jack. Just ask about that at the end of the Get to Know.

As we cannot hold mentors' availability for long after we have matched a young person with them (due to demand), we ask that you also reply to the email that brought you to this page and confrm.

3. Funding Sessions:

Session Fees: Based on the answers you provided in our application form, the fees for your sessions were included in your mentor match confrimation email which took you to this page.

Payments: On the day of your get to know, you'll need to set-up your weekly automated payments through this link https://pay.changers.org.uk/b/8wMaH75Z4doccGA3cc. If you have been provided with a subsidy by Game Changers, you will need to enter this into the payment page. The subsidy coupon was emailed to you in the message that brought you to this page. Don't worry, if you do not want to proceed with weekly sessions following the Get to Know session, or if you want to break for half-term etc. you can simply suspend or stop the automated payments through this link https://www.changers.org.uk/my-account or clicking on the My Account button on the main menu on our site at https://changers.org.uk. You can also email us to do this.

Billing: To reduce admin and associated costs we work on an automated weekly billing system from a debit card. Please note, all billing, payments, mentor PAYE are managed by Game Changers. Please do not engage with mentors on payment related issues.

Schedule: While there's no long-term commitment, we encourage an informal 4-week commitment from you, to provide stability for our mentors and lower our administration. However, we understand that if your Child just doesn’t take to the sessions or are unable to cope we will only bill for the sessions you do have.

Regular session timing: If you would like to proceed with Game Changers after the Get to Know session, for consistency, it's helpful if sessions occur on the same days and times each week. We appreciate 24 hours' notice for cancellations to accommodate other students. You can reschedule sessions through the links in your session invite or by WhatsApp'ing or emailing your mentor.

Charging for Cancellations: Regarding charging for last minute cancellations please do not discuss this with the mentor. Whilst you should let your mentor know via email or WhatsApp you need to reschedule/cancel. Regarding questions about fees for the cancellation please direct to [email protected] including your Childs full name and reason for the cancellation. We will always do what we can to support you. In many cases we try and waive it. We always pay our mentors for their booked time.

Please keep in mind that Game Changers Education is a not-for-profit organisation, and our surplus revenue goes towards discounted or free mentor fees and free hardware for disadvantaged families that are supporting an autistic young person.

Local Authority Funding: EOTAS: Some families have explored adding Game Changer's fees to their Education Otherwise Than At School (EOTAS) provision with their LA, so if you're interested in this option, we'd be happy to discuss it further or talk with your LA Caseworker. Most families self-fund and try to move to this over time. If you have received a subsidy we ask that you push for either school or LA funding.

School Funding: Where children have an EHCP and are in a specialist setting. In some cases these settings fund Game Changers sessions.

4. Practical points for the get to know session & further sessions:

To ensure a smooth start, please consider the following practical points for the "get to know" session and future sessions:

Gaming prep: If there's a specific multiplayer game your Child would like to play during the session, please inform your mentor in advance of the session so that they can prepare. You can do this in the field when you book the meeting or by email or WhatsApp to the mentor.

Engines we use: Based on your Child's age, diagnosis, experience and device capabilities we will explore us game development engines that we believe will be a good fit.

Device Suitability: To ensure your Child's device is suitable; your mentor will help assess its performance and configuration during the initial, or later sessions. If it is not powerful enough, we offer access to high spec remote Game Development PCs. This allows your Child to remotely connect to the PC over the internet and it will feel like they are working on a local machine! Do not worry, we will look after all of this.

Session video/audio: We use Google Meet for sessions, and screen sharing is necessary for assistance with applications and navigation. You will have a google meet link in your session invite. You do not need to download software to get on the meeting. It can all work through your web browser.

You can also download Google Meet as an app on your computer if you prefer. For instructions about that simple installation please click here to be taken to the Google info page

We are also able to use discord, just let your mentor know.

We don't use MS teams, it is too clunky!

(Optional) Before the Get to Know session: If you would like to have a short 1:1 chat with Sveety to discuss anything e.g. setting up any applications on your computer, background/learning topics, or things that might be triggering, then you are welcome to use this link to do that. It is optional, but worth doing if you have any worries. Book the 30 min pre-meet here: https://calendly.com/jack-gamechanger/pre-meet-with-jack

Communication for regular sessions: We'll set up a WhatsApp group to facilitate communication about the sessions, updates on how your child is progressing, and any issues. We also encourage you to provide feedback to us on the group chat too. It is really great for our mentors to hear if things are going well and the impact their work has had on your child or family. As you can imagine sometimes our kids just can't cope due to other life situations. Our mentors can feel like they have failed. Every postive message goes a long way.

Session content: During progress though a topic, if your child decides that they want to do something else all of a sudden, that's totally fine. It happens often whilst any young person understands what they like the most. Our mentor will support, guide and follow your child's interests it is what we do.

Reducing demand: We also understand that your child may have days when they are just not in the mood for game design work. In such cases, their mentor can spend time bonding and playing multiplayer games together, providing valuable social interaction and companionship.

Working in-between sessions: As we move forward, we'll also ensure that the learning experience is comfortable and tailored to your childs pace. We don't impose completion demands on tasks between sessions and we always maintain a flexible "have a go if you like, and I'll help you with it next week" approach.