Pupil bravely takes to the stage

Teacher, Joseph Edwards shares all the detail:

"Earlier in the year, one pupil was given the opportunity to attend a youth school leadership day at Lavington School to develop his sports leadership skills, and without hesitation he agreed to attend. On the day, he felt very anxious and shy as he was the only pupil from our school, however, despite his feelings he thoroughly enjoyed himself and excelled in many different areas."

He continued: 

"Eight months later, I received an email from former GB Paralympic swimmer, Kate Grey, informing me that he had been selected for the Youth School Games Young Role Model for the next event.  This selection has been based on his visit earlier in the year, predominantly for his bravery, determination and outstanding efforts, and being the only pupils from his school. As part of the selection, I was informed that he would need to make a presentation, which he would need to deliver to his peers from both mainstream and SEN schools. On top of this he would have to deliver an activity to them, of whom he’d never met, focusing on key leadership skills. This was a big ask and quite overwhelming, however, his reply was: "Tell them, yes, I accept their kind invitation.”

Prior to his presentation, he was asked about his school and how he feels about being there. He replied:

"I do everything I can to look out for people in my school, we are all extremely tight and are always there for each other, it makes me feel proud."

Following this, he delivered a challenging and differentiated activity to the whole group, where he continued to grow in enthusiasm and confidence.  

At the very end of the day, the audience was asked to provide feedback on the whole day, and the overwhelmingly positive response was that his session was their favourite part of the day.

Staff from The Eaves Learning Centre are all extremely proud of what he has achieved, he has been truly outstanding. Well done.