How caring for others has given excluded Bristol pupils a sense of belonging

Bristol Futures Academy in Barton Hill has teamed up with a local community café to support pupils by giving them work experience and the opportunity to help older residents.

Many of the children who attend Futures have struggled with mainstream education and on average the Year 10 and 11 pupils have already been to at least five other schools.

The sense of belonging they get from being able to connect positively with adults and help others while learning new skills has built their confidence and leadership skills.

One Year 11 pupil who has been volunteering at the café for the last couple of months said that he really enjoys cooking and has “learned a lot about life” through the experience.

“It’s a good experience, supporting the local community," he said. "I’ve learned that it’s good to help the community and help people. You don’t know what’s going on in other peoples’ lives and every little helps."

School principal, Miss Alex Davies, first approached Cafe Conscious across the road from the school back in 2018 to take the children out of the classroom and into the community.

She added: “It’s given them an opportunity to have a voice and to feel valued. The children that we work with have predominantly been passed around the system for so long that they have had every inch of confidence knocked out of them and it’s our job to build them back up again.

“They’ve got massive gaps in their learning and it’s enabled them to raise their confidence and give them a sense of belonging.

“It’s helped their leadership skills and their communication skills, while preparing them for the world of work.”

The school and the café have built up an informal partnership over the years which meant that when the school was stuck without a catering company, the café began to provide them with lunches.

With only 50 pupils it was difficult to find a catering company when the contract ended with their former provider and the Jamaican food that chef Wayne cooks is very popular with the pupils.

Café owner, Deniece Dixon, said the partnership has been mutually beneficial and has really enjoyed watching the children grow and develop through their work.

Source: https://www.bristolpost.co.uk/news/bristol-news/how-caring-others-given-excluded-6517397

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