Big Buddy Mentoring Trust

How We Create Change

Big Buddy supports boys between the age of 7 and 14 who don't have their father in their lives. We do this by recruiting good guys from the community to spend a few hours with them every weekend. We are a free service and have a 100% success rate in taking male volunteers through a highly developed, professional screening process.

Big and Little Buddies do simple things together like kick a ball, walk the dog or go to the beach. The most important things a Big Buddy can do is show up, spend time and come back again.

These simple gestures make a profound difference in the life of a young boy and our research shows that boys gain confidence, build resilience and quickly become happier with a Big Buddy to trust and rely on.

One mum told us:

“I had an 11-year-old son who spoke about his life not being worth anything when his Dad died. After he got his Big Buddy, he no longer spoke like that. Things have changed dramatically for him. My other son who was 10, used to cry himself to sleep every night and walked around like he had the weight of the world on his shoulders. There was a lightness to him after he was matched with his Big Buddy. 10 years on, both boys are still in regular contact with their Buddies.

I thought Big Buddy would be about learning manly things like fixing stuff, cars, sport etc but it was nothing like that. It taught my boys things, real man stuff, like being there for someone else, supporting them, showing up for important events, talking and listening, showing their Mum respect. Our lives have changed so much since we got Big Buddies - our family has gone from three to 11 with the Big Buddies and their wives and children. Life is pretty good for both boys (and me) now”