I write often about giving our young people a chance whether through employment opportunities, mentoring and support or just by listening to them.
This resonates clearly with how I choose to volunteer, most notably as a Trustee for Centrepoint, a charity that works hard to give homeless young people a future. At Centrepoint we believe that through help and support young people can succeed. We provide opportunities like the Centrepoint Parliament which gives young people who have experienced homelessness the chance to have an influence within the charity itself and with national government to help others like them. It is the only body that gives homeless, young people, a voice.
Barnardo’s has a similar ethos and has just launched a major advertising campaign called Life Story, which demonstrates the journey that many troubled children go through and the positive impact that believing in a child can have on turning their life around. Their redoubtable CEO, Anne Marie Carrie launched this campaign alongside some shocking research findings that showed that almost half the UK’s population agree that children today are beginning to behave like animals and that the trouble with young people is that they’re angry, violent and abusive.
No doubt that this ICM survey had its results influenced by the summer riots but in reality only an extremely small minority took part. What about all those that are trying to make something of themselves after a difficult start, like the Centrepoint Youth Parliament volunteers?
Even more worrying is that more people disagreed with the statement that children who got into trouble are in need of help than agreed. Indeed most shockingly 25% of respondents felt that children who behave badly or anti-socially are beyond help by the age of 10. It is never too late and as Anne Marie says ‘The small minority of children who come across as angry and abusive have sadly often been scarred by their upbringing. But it’s never too late to believe in children and change their life story.’
As a child one of my most inspirational teachers was my math’s teacher, Mr Trew who was proud to have been a ‘Barnardo’s boy’ and ensured that as we understood how we could help others by fundraising for less privileged children in the UK and abroad.
So perhaps I’ve always been aware that investing and believing in children and young people has a positive outcome.
So please ask yourself what can you do as a leader to invest and believe in young people and join Centrepoint, Barnardos and others who haven’t given up on UK children and young people when they have difficulties. Oh and watch the Barnardo’s campaign, Life Story. http://bit.ly/u8Fdii
Gill Gibb, Programme Director, Charity Leaders' Exchange
How many secondary school teachers have either left the profession, want to do so, or do not want to get involved in teaching at that level? This question must be asked when considering youngster's behaviour.
I did supply teaching for 3 years as a specialist in Business Studies and IT. I am fairly street-wise having been brought up in a Hackney school. I would prefer to be unemployed than go back to most of those schools, where it can be dangerous to teach, particularly in the Dalston and Highbury areas.
The comedy "Please Sir" is a very funny film, for its time-1967. Unfortunately it is now like a documentary of our times.
Power has been taken away from the teachers and schools to deal with the miscreants. In my days at school (1958-1963) I had to learn to be street-wise because this was the era of the activities of the Krays, and some of the children from my school, and living nearby were already operating "protection rackets".
From experience the situation is not helped by the laziness of the police, who do not want to get involved and the hard left-wing attitudes of social workers, who have not learned the proverb "spare the rod and spoil the child". I do not advocate widespread caning at school-there were some sadistic and vicious teachers around even in my era. If such punishment hould be administered it should only be done by the one Head Teacher-and no other. Expulsions should mean what they say and not allow the youngsters to return to that same school if for example a teacher has been attacked, either physically or verbally or anybody has been subject to racial or other discrimination.
The TV programme documenting the school in Harlow horrifies me in that the first supply teaching job that I undertook was a maths class in guess where-Harlow. I arrived in the class to be greeted with paper aeroplanes flying all over the place, and being hit by a couple. One pupil hid another's worknotes on the outside window ledge. The notes didn't last very long, as soon the who ledge was to collapse into the playground below, luckily not injuring anyone. It may have been the samer school as in Educating Essex.
Posted by: L. Hoppen | November 21, 2011 at 01:25 PM