ABOUT

JOEL TENNANT

Who I Am

I’m Joel Tennant the founder of Against The Odds. I grew up the same way many young people are growing up right now: misunderstood, labelled, and pushed aside. I moved through care homes, different schools, and places that never felt like home.
By 15, I was homeless.
I wasn’t a “bad kid”.
I was a kid surviving things most adults would struggle with.

My Turning Point

Everything changed when one person finally saw me differently not as a problem or a statistic, but as someone with potential. Someone believed in me before I believed in myself.

From there, I worked, studied, failed, tried again, and eventually became the youngest manager in my company. But the biggest realisation was this:

I could use everything I’d been through to help young people who feel the way I once did.

Why I Do This

There are young people right now who feel:

  • angry
  • unseen
  • confused
  • abandoned
  • labelled
  • unheard

I know that mindset.
I lived it.
And that’s why my sessions wore because they come from real experience, not theory.
Young people don’t just need support.
They need someone real. Someone who gets it. Someone who listens.
My goal is simple: help them rebuild confidence, direction, and belief.

image of prayer circle (for a church & cathedral)

What Makes My Approach Different

  • Lived experience, not textbook teaching
  • Authenticity and connection over authority and labels
  • Real structure, real guidance, real change

My Mission

No young person should feel like their story is already written.
I’m here to guide them, challenge them, and help them see
the potential they can’t see yet.

[headshot] image of customer (for an architect firm)
Joel Tennant
Youth Speaker & Lived Experience Practicioner.
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Call to Action

If you’re supporting a young person who needs someone real in their corner I’m here

Start here

Get in touch

Let’s Support Your Young People

you’ll speak directly with me no automated replies, just a real conversation.