We are thrilled to announce that a group of eight Year 12 students from Swanwick Hall Sixth Form have emerged as Regional Champions for 2023 in the East Midlands round of the NextGenLeaders programme. This initiative, facilitated by Enactus UK, offers students from UK schools the opportunity to develop and run their own sustainable community enterprise, with the chance to showcase their work in regional competitions. The student teams present their projects to a panel of judges from prestigious organisations such as George at ASDA, Specsavers, and Nottingham Trent University.
One of our teams, Connect U, has been working to reduce social isolation among residents at a local retirement home. They have been engaging the patients in conversations, sharing stories, and playing games, while also organizing a tea party. As part of their project, the team has collected oral histories and is using the lessons learned to write a PSHE lesson which they hope will raise awareness of the issue.We are excited to see Connect U’s commitment to involving next year’s Year 12 students in the project, making it sustainable over the next few years.
Recently, Connect U had the opportunity to meet with our CEO, Wesley Davies. The students briefed him on their project, and he was impressed by their work and professional approach. They asked for help to give their PSHE lesson a wider reach, and Wesley immediately stepped in. He has asked the PSHE Leads in all our schools to set aside a lesson in June to deliver the PSHE lesson that Connect U students have developed based on their conversations with the older people.
We would like to congratulate the Connect U team members: Demi Meakin (project leader), Kayleigh Brown, Alfie Griffiths, Amber Goodyear, Ella Jarrett, Philippa Woolley, India Henderson, and Jessica Dadley-Webb for their dedication, creativity, and hard work. We wish them the best of luck as they continue to make a positive impact in our community.
