One teenager said the charity he now volunteers with “might have saved his life” while he was also getting help.

STEP Swindon runs therapy groups for children and young people who have mental health problems, learning disabilities, autism or other difficulties in their lives.

Groups can also include activities such as arts, drama and sport, and some of the funding for this has been available for over a decade. Children in Need.

Jaime, who is now at university, said it “made such a difference in my life, I want to give something back.”

He first came to groups about 6 years ago, when he was 10-11 years old: “I was a bit of a mess. I struggled with anger throughout my childhood.

“STEP basically changed my life. It may have saved my life a few times.”

Jaime describes the environment as relaxed, which allows people to open up. There are also opportunities to be creative.

“For me, I was almost dispensable. I never want anyone to feel that way again.

“I want anyone who is struggling to know that there is an open door and there is someone there for them,” she added.

Maisie, a 12-year-old autistic girl, said that she first started the sessions when she was having problems at school: “I felt like I could connect more with people like me. I felt like I could be more myself around everyone.”

Her mother, Karina, said her daughter’s behavior had worsened before STEP: “You couldn’t console her. The atmosphere at home was terrible, she was always stepping on eggshells.”

She was impressed with the quick direction and said Maisie, who was initially “afraid of literally everything”, became “much more confident”.

His mother said, “He is calmer. He is happier. School life is a little easier. The atmosphere at home has changed.”

Paul Dobson – director STEP Swindon – explained that there are a variety of reasons why children come to them: “Our difference is that the groups we put together are specially created. We take the referrals and bring the groups together according to need.

“We want them to reciprocate the support we give them. We need to get them going, make sure it’s fun,” he added.

He told the BBC that many models of care may stick to one or two methods of help, but they think slightly differently: “I like to think we use the ‘whatever it takes’ model.”

Mr Dobson says Children in Need “believes in what we do and trusts us to achieve it”.