My Journey From Survival to Leadership
I want to start by saying this, I never imagined I would be here. Not because I lacked ambition, but because there were so many moments in my life when simply surviving was the only goal I had. The fact that I am now the Founder and Director of SPLAOCH Care Foundation, and that I get to do this work every single day, is something I do not take for granted for a single moment.
My name is Francess H. Massaquoi. I am a single parent, a survivor, a humanitarian, and an advocate. And everything I have built, everything SPLAOCH stands for comes directly from the life I have lived. A lived experienced Journey.
“I did not choose this path. But I chose what to do with it.”
WHERE I COME FROM: A CHILDHOOD SHAPED BY WAR
I was born in Liberia and raised in Sierra Leone. By the time I was seven years old, I had already experienced displacement and homelessness. By thirteen, I had survived family separation and the chaos of two civil wars in Liberia and Sierra Leone. These are not easy things to write — but they are the truth of who I am and where I come from.
In 1993, I made a decision that changed my life. With war closing in around me on the Sierra Leone and Liberia border, I climbed onto a UN peacekeeping truck heading from the Liberia and sierra leone border to Liberia and Hide. Alone and afraid, but determined to try to find my birth parents. I had just been separated from my uncle, who had been caring for me, and I had nowhere else to turn.
In 1999, I was forced to flee again, this time from Liberia. I spent three years as a refugee in Ghana before finally arriving in the United Kingdom in 2003.
I arrived in this country with new hope. I thought the hardest part was behind me. but I was wrong.
LIFE IN THE UK — FIGHTING TO STAY STANDING
The struggles I faced in the United Kingdom were different from war — but they were just as relentless.
In 2009, I reached one of the darkest points of my life. I experienced a near-fatal mental health crisis to end it all and was saved only because a neighbour called an ambulance on time. I share this not for sympathy, but because I know there are parents reading this right now who have stood in that same darkness and I want them to know that it is possible to come through it. There is always light at the end of the tunnel.
Between 2011 and 2012, I found myself homeless again in the UK as an immigrant, this time with my one-week-old daughter in my arms. I was a new single mother with no family support, no safety net, and nowhere to turn. During this period, I also survived a kidnapping ordeal in the UK. But I am still here today. And so is my daughter.
For over twenty years, I navigated the UK healthcare system whilst managing chronic health conditions and hidden disabilities. There were times when my daughter from just five years old became my carer. My little girl, who should have been playing and learning and simply being a child, was instead worrying about me. That broke my heart then, and it still does today. In hospital wards, I met other parents carrying the very same story, invisible, unsupported, and fighting alone.
I struggled to maintain employment and was unable to take on better positions that I deserved, because my health limited my ability to do so. My daughter missed weeks of school because I had no support to get her there.There were nights we slept in hospital together.
And then came the moment I feared most. I nearly lost custody of my daughter because of my health struggles. While I was on oxygen during an asthma attack, I was told that if I could not find support for my child, she would be removed from my care and that it would take time to get her back. There was no system designed to help us in that moment. There was no service that understood what we were going through. I had to fight with the help of close friends who advocated on my behalf just to keep my own child by my side.
It was in that moment, sitting in the middle of a system that had no space for people like me, that SPLAOCH was born.
“No parent should ever have to fight alone for support, dignity, or the right to keep their family together because of illness or disability.”
WHY I FOUNDED SPLAOCH CARE FOUNDATION
I founded SPLAOCH Care Foundation because I lived the gap that it is designed to fill. I know what it feels like to be a single parent managing a serious health condition with no one to call. I know what it feels like to watch your child carry a burden they should never have to carry. I know what it feels like to be invisible to the very services that are supposed to help you.
SPLAOCH exists so that other families do not have to feel what I felt. It exists to step in before the crisis, to stand alongside families in the most difficult moments, and to make sure that no parent ever has to fight alone for the right to keep their family together.
Through SPLAOCH, we are committed to:
This foundation is not just my life’s work. It is my life’s purpose.
WHAT ELSE I DO — A LEADER BEYOND SPLAOCH
SPLAOCH is my heart — but it is not the only way I work to uplift people and communities. I am also:
CEO — PeaceFM Promotion UK Ltd: Supporting small and medium-sized businesses through media and marketing.
Founder — Liberians Excellence Achievers & Global Stars Awards: Celebrating outstanding achievers across the globe.
Creative Director — PeaceFM Creative Hair Designs: An award-winning enterprise in the creative and beauty industry.
I’m also a support worker for special needs young Adults and Hair and Beauty Therapist, Everything I do — in business, in media, in the community or the creative comes from the same place. I believe in people. I believe that with the right support, the right voice, and the right opportunities, anyone can rise. I have lived that truth myself.
RECOGNITION & HONOURED TO BE SEEN
I have been humbled to receive recognition for the work I do, including:
★ Humanitarian Award (2023) — Westminster Parliament, London
★ Multi-Award-Winning Media Personality
★ Multi-Award-Winning Creative Hair Designer
I am deeply grateful for these honours. But I will be honest with you — none of them mean more to me than the moment a single parent tells me they feel less alone. None of them mean more than a young carer who finally feels seen. That is the award I work for every day.
HOW YOU CAN BE PART OF THIS
I am not doing this alone — and I cannot do it alone. SPLAOCH needs people who believe in what we are building. People who want to be part of something that genuinely changes lives.
Here is how you can get involved:
If my story has moved you — please act on that. Share it. Support it. Join it. Together, we can turn pain into power, struggles into strength, and challenges into lasting change.
Be the change. Join the movement. No Family Left Behind.
With love and determination,
Francess H. Massaquoi
Founder & Director
SPLAOCH Care Foundation
www.splaochcarefoundation.org
info@splaochcarefoundation.org
+44 7512 861322
SPLAOCH Care Foundation Ltd | No Family Left Behind | No Parents Left Behind Due to Illness or Disability
At SPLAOCH Care Foundation Ltd, our work is guided by these key values:
We support single parents, young carers, and disadvantaged children
with empathy, dignity, and genuine care, recognising the unique challenges they face.
We believe no family should be left behind – regardless of health
condition, disability, or circumstance.
We help individuals and families build strength, confidence,
and long-term independence.
We amplify the voices of those facing visible and hidden challenges, ensuring their needs are recognised and addressed.
We foster local networks of support, resilience, and
belonging for vulnerable families
We are committed to transparency, accountability,
and the highest standards of governance.
We develop practical, forward-thinking solutions that respond to real-life challenges and evolving community needs to fill unmet gaps.
SPLAOCH Care Foundation is governed by a dedicated and growing Board of Trustees, currently being formalised as part of our transition to a Charitable Incorporated Organisation (CIO).
Our trustees bring a range of professional expertise across safeguarding, health, community development, finance, and governance. Trustee profiles will be published here upon completion of the onboarding process.
If you are interested in joining our Board of Trustees as a volunteer, we would love to hear from you. Please contact us at info@splaochcarefoundation.org
This community roundtable brings together parents, caregivers, professionals, and partners to share experiences, discuss challenges, and co-create meaningful solutions. Focused on supporting single parents and families facing health and social difficulties, the session promotes open dialogue, early intervention, and collaboration. Participants will explore ways to prevent family separation, strengthen support systems, and improve access to essential services. It creates a safe, inclusive environment where every voice is valued, empowering communities to grow stronger, healthier, and more resilient together.
Too many single parents with complex health conditions, hidden disabilities, young carers, and disadvantaged children are struggling in silence. Their challenges go unnoticed, their voices unheard, and their needs unmet. It’s time to change that!
SPLAOCH Care Foundation Ltd is calling on YOU to be part of a powerful campaign that demands visibility, support, and action for vulnerable families.
📢 JOIN US at the “Let’s Speak on It” Campaign & Awareness Workshop!
WHY ATTEND?
Be heard: Share your experiences and challenges in a safe, non-judgmental space.
Gain insights: Learn from expert guest speakers in health, education, and social support.
Inspire change: Join policy advocacy discussions to push for real solutions.
Build community: Connect with others facing similar struggles and find support.
YOUR STORY MATTERS. YOUR VOICE CAN CREATE CHANGE. ✨🎤
Are you a single parent battling a health condition with no support?
* Is your child missing school because of your health challenges?
* Are you a young carer balancing responsibilities beyond your years?
This is YOUR platform. Let’s stand together and turn struggles into strength!
📧 Register as a speaker/ as partners or as a guest now: email: info@splaochcarefoundation.org
🌍 Visit our website: www.splaochcarefoundation.org
📲 Follow us on all social media channels:
🔊 CHANGE BEGINS WITH AWARENESS. ACTION CREATES IMPACT. SO WILL YOU JOIN US?
Splaoch care foundation ltd is committed to improving the lives of single parents living with Visible and invisible health challenges, alongside their disadvantaged children and young carers. Through a holistic and compassionate approach, we aim to deliver:
A • Offering tailored care plans to support single parents managing complex health and their family responsibilities,
B • Referal services for respite care, healthcare access, and essential community resources.
A • Coordinating school runs for children of single parents facing health challenges through a trusted network of DBS checked volunteers.
B • providing mentoring,?educational tools, and resources to ensure children thrive academically.
A • Creating a safe spaces for respite programs for young carers to alleviate the burden on young carers and enable them to enjoy their childhood.
A • Raising awareness about the challenges faced by single parent managing visible and invisible complex health issues.
B • Advocating and championing for a systemic change to improve and ensure better access to healthcare, education and practical support.
C• Raising Public awareness about the unique challenges faced by single parents with complex health conditions .
A • To Build and Establish a robust network of volunteers to provide emotional and practical support.
B • Organizing impactful workshops, compassionate support groups, and empowerment programs for health challenged single parents and young carers to achieve personal and financial stability.
The SPLAOCH Care Foundation Ltd. goal is to create a future where health challenge single parents and their children are not only supported but are empowered to thrive despite their challenges. Together, we build a thriving. strong families, healthier communities, and brighter futures that includes visible and invisible challenge health single parents.
Together, we can create a world where every parent feels supported and no challenge feels insurmountable. Join our mission to provide holistic care, offer meaningful solutions, and empower families to achieve their full potential.
