A new mentorship scheme for year 7s at Brighton Aldridge Community Academy (BACA) is set to launch in the new year.
The pilot scheme will see community members from organisations across East Brighton spending time with pupils individually to help inspire and support them.
Pupils will receive a regular short session each half-term from January 2023, in which they can talk to a mentor about their personal or academic goals and challenges.
Mentors will listen and share their own work experiences and problem-solving approaches.
BACA headmaster Jack Davies said: “It’s about raising the aspirations of students and giving them opportunities to speak to people who aren’t teachers who have experience of the real world.
“The biggest thing for me is that it’s about building trust in the community and raising the profile of the school, but giving the students an opportunity at the same time.
“We live in such a rich diverse city and we need to celebrate that more.
“They could have the most influence on year 7s. It’s a very difficult time, they’ve missed a lot of primary school.
“These 45 minute conversations could be pivotal in those students’ lives and that’s why it’s so important.
“For me, it would grow so that every student in the school had an external mentor, that is my dream really.
“In my last school, the students who had those mentors found it extremely beneficial and it had a huge impact on attendance.”
BACA says the mentors they are looking for will need a willingness to learn from young people, acceptance of their needs and optimism about young people and their abilities.
Community group partners in the project include East Brighton Trust, The Bevy, The Crew Club, Class Divide and Wired Sussex.
Chris Llewellyn, secretary at The Bevy, said: “A lot of the BACA pupils are locally based.
“We want to make sure people have positive adult role models in their lives.
“It’s that transition time which can be really tricky.
“Having someone external who’s not actually part of the school who can talk to them and guide them is really important.
“And it’s a two way thing, there’s a benefit both for the pupil but also for the mentor, in terms of self-confidence and feeling like you can make a difference.”
Ty Goddard, from East Brighton Trust said: “Mentoring is valuable for students and it is a positive use of time for people who want to give something back to their community.
“East Brighton Trust is working with respected organisations like, The Bevy, The Crew Club, Wired Sussex and Class Divide to support BACA, to make this project happen.”
Key dates for further information and training for the mentoring scheme, as well as the dates of sessions are available on the BACA website.
