I have been working with a group of 6th form male students, at Beverley School, for a significant period. This is a Bespoke intervention that has been tailored to the needs of the students.
We have covered lots of different topics, including –
Current local and international news, politics, the state of our economy, mental health, poverty, drugs and alcohol, respect, future plans/college, the importance of getting young people’s voices.
I often go into the session with a plan. However it sometimes takes some interesting turns, and we may end up discussing another topic, that is important to the group, that needs further exploration. The sessions consist of discussion pointers that I have planned, and the students also enjoy scenarios, that they can unpick, discuss and debate.
The lads are clearly comfortable with each other and have built really good friendships, which is amazing to see. They have recently set up their own Dungeons and Dragons meeting, outside of school, and hopefully this will continue when they move on from Beverley.
The students have opened up on some sensitive topics and have had good discussions/debates. Some students were quieter at the start but have clearly become more confident in the sessions and have brought some really good ideas for discussion.
I have loved the sessions with the students as hopefully they have learnt something from me, but I know I have definitely learnt from them. Their teacher advised that when the sessions stopped for a short period, that they missed the Headstart sessions, which is positive to hear.
To the Beverley students, I wish you all the best of luck in your new academic settings in September and thank you all for your honesty, your openness to talk about some sensitive topics, your participation in the group sessions, and as well, your humour.
Published: July 14