Tag: Mentoring

New report calls for action on tutoring and mentoring to help close Scotland’s attainment gap

Stark gaps in educational attainment in Scotland could be reduced through the rollout of mentoring and tutoring support, according to a new report.

Highlighting evidence showing that mentoring and tutoring have positive impacts on attainment for young people living in the grip of poverty, the report, based on research conducted by the Poverty Alliance for The Robertson Trust, calls for mentoring and tutoring to be available and targeted to all school-aged children and young people at risk of poverty in Scotland. 

It showed that high-quality tutoring programmes, in particular, can significantly reduce inequalities in educational attainment. Despite this, the report reveals that the provision of free tuition for young people living in Scotland is sparse.

In comparison to the National Tutoring Programme, which provides free tuition for pupils in England and Wales, the Scottish Government has not committed to widespread, accessible tuition as part of Covid-19 recovery.

Published yesterday on National Mentoring Day, the report highlights the success of mentoring as an effective intervention for improving self-confidence and raising aspirations amongst young people affected by poverty.

Earlier this year, the Scottish Government and The Hunter Foundation committed to the expansion of mentoring and leadership support for care-experienced young people through funding the roll-out of MCR Pathways’ Young Scottish Talent and Columba 1400’s Leadership Academies across Scotland. 

However, this report reveals a mixed landscape in terms of mentoring provision, with geographical gaps and a lack of provision directed at groups of children and young people who are more likely to be living in poverty compounded by other forms of disadvantage.

Dr Jim McCormick, Chief Executive, The Robertson Trust said: “Too many young people across Scotland are seeing their life chances restricted by poverty.  

“At a time when painstaking progress is at risk of unravelling, it is deeply concerning to see any research which highlights an uneven educational playing field. The lack of free tutoring support is just one example of this and something that will invariably put young people living in poverty at a further disadvantage. 

“We are keen to use these findings to understand what the role of an independent funder should be in working towards equal access to tutoring/mentoring opportunities which can lead to positive academic, developmental and emotional outcomes.

“Based on what we’ve heard, we are calling for greater collaboration between funders and support organisations to help bridge the gaps, both to level the playing field and to build a stronger evidence base of what works. 

“Equally, we hope that this review will stimulate renewed commitment to act on the poverty-related attainment gap across Scotland, particularly in light of the disproportionate impact Covid-19 has had on those most affected.” 

Dr Laura Robertson, Research Officer at the Poverty Alliance and lead author of the review, said: “The Scottish Government has put tackling the poverty-based attainment gap at the heart of its agenda.

“However, inequalities in education attainment remain stark. Covid-19 has not only tightened the grip of poverty on the lives of many children and young people, but has also exacerbated these inequalities. Now, more than ever, children and young people need access to additional support.  

“This report reveals that – despite the evidence that it works – young people living in poverty still don’t have equal access to high quality tutoring free of charge. In a just society, all children and young people should have access to support that allows them to reach their potential, so the Scottish Government must – if it wants to end the attainment gap – respond with action.” 

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National Mentoring Day: UK SMES to get 1-2-1 mentoring from Liz Earle MBE and Levi Roots

Small businesses can win a mentoring session with the Dragons Den star and Wellbeing Entrepreneur

Caribbean cuisine entrepreneur Levi Roots and beauty and wellness megabrand founder Liz Earle are leading a new campaign to encourage UK small businesses to unlock the benefits of digital skills training to help drive their post-pandemic growth and prosperity.

The ‘Get mentored, Get growing’ campaign highlights a partnership between BT and Google, that offers free one-to-one mentoring sessions for UK small businesses and charities covering a range of topics including digital marketing, e-commerce and business strategy.

This comes as BT research* shows almost half of all UK small firms (49 per cent) said they worried their business wouldn’t survive without external support. Meanwhile, 64 per cent said they’d be more likely to adopt new technologies if the IT and telecoms industry provided training. 

As an extension of their mentoring programme, BT and Google are offering small businesses the opportunity to win a one-to-one mentoring session with Levi and Liz, where they can learn from their experiences of building and scaling a brand as well as adapting to a digital-first world.

To enter small businesses must enter at Sign Up: 1-to-1 Mentoring with BT and Google and the must meet the following criteria:

  • 18 and over 
  • UK based small business, we can ask for proof of a registered UK business address if required.
  • Small business with under 50 employees
  • They must be available on 15th November, Tuesday 16th at 10:00AM, Thursday 18th at 10:00AM, 19th November (11:00AM onwards)
  • They must want to be mentored on one or more the following topics: 
    • Building your brand
    • Building an online community
    • Time management  
    • Team collaboration 

All entrants are subject to the terms and conditions.**

Ronan Harris, Google’s UK MD, said: ”We’re proud to partner with BT and the participating business leaders on this inspirational program.

“Equipping small businesses with the digital tools needed to grow and succeed, is not only integral to future proofing the UK business landscape but it’s the next step in the UK’s journey to economic recovery. We’re committed to making sure shared knowledge and digital skills are as accessible as possible and make a lasting impact for the entrepreneurs of the future.”

Chris Sims, BT’s MD for its SoHo (Single/Small Office, Home Office) unit, said: “Our partnership with Google comes from a shared vision and commitment to help small businesses harness digital as a driver of growth and prosperity.

“Through our free mentoring programme and digital skills training, we’re aiming to equip small firms with the skills and knowledge needed to succeed in a digital world. BT initiatives, including one-to-one mentorships, have already boosted the digital literacy of almost 300,000 small business employees to date and our partnership with Google is helping us significantly extend our reach and impact within the small business community.” 

Following his success on BBC’s Dragons Den, Levi Roots is proof-positive of the power of business mentoring, which helped transform his kitchen table start-up into a £45M business. 

Similarly, Liz Earle is one of the UK’s most successful entrepreneurs.  From a career starting as a health and beauty writer, she co-founded her eponymous beauty brand with her best friend, which was sold for a multi-million sum before returning to the wellness category with her own website, magazine, podcast series and YouTube channel and earning an MBE for services to the beauty industry.

Both Levi and Liz are passionate about supporting the entrepreneur community.

Commenting on his involvement in the BT and Google campaign, Levi Roots said; “Running your own business can sometimes be overwhelming and lonely, so I know from my own Dragons Den experience how game-changing it was, both professionally and personally, to work with someone who could understand and appreciate my challenges and ambitions, and give me personalised, meaningful and actionable advice, as well as practical tools and training to help me build and grow my business. 

“I’m really delighted to get the chance to pay it forward and share my journey and insights with today’s small business community and help them unlock the power of digital to accelerate their growth.” 

Liz Earle added; “When my beauty brand was  launched more than twenty years ago, our mail order business was based around paper forms and payments by cheque. Today everything moves at a completely different pace.

“You have to act like a publisher on your social media channels and be super responsive to customers who want a real-time answer, not a letter in the post! With my later publishing brand, we had to learn a mass of digital skills super-fast and I encourage small businesses to grab all the available resources and training they can to help successfully navigate their way in the online world.”

Both BT and Google are jointly committed to helping small businesses across the UK get better positioned for growth by addressing the digital skills shortage.

Since the launch of BT Skills for Tomorrow in 2019, BT has delivered free digital skills training to almost 300,000 UK small business owners and their employees, supported by webinars from Google Digital Garage, putting Google on course to achieve its target of enabling one million small British businesses remain open by helping them be found online.

On top of this, Google has exceeded its target of helping train 100,000 UK SMBs. In total, over 700,000 business owners have been trained through the Google Digital Garage programme. 

Small business case study comments:

Khamisi McKenzie, who co-founded South London soul food business Drums & Flats with his best friend Daniel Opoku-Baah, is one of the thousands of small business founders and employees who’ve already benefited from BT and Google’s digital skills support and training scheme.

Commenting on the experience, he said; “Lockdown forced us to take a step back and re-evaluate our business and we recognised that while our energy and effort went into perfecting our recipes and brand identity, we needed to get seen by more people.

“Thanks to the digital marketing mentoring sessions, we improved how we show up on Google and boosted our efforts in social media. We’ve definitely seen an increase in followers and better engagement rates, and it’s helped build our profile which resulted in us taking over the menu at The Smugglers Tavern in Central London.” 

Laurelle Darroux, founder of Sleepgoddess, a one-stop shop for vegan, ethical British-made beauty sleep products, launched her business in the middle of the pandemic in 2020 and BT and Google’s digital skills training was a key enabler in getting up and running and rapidly expanding her customer base.

“Feeling lost and dejected when I was made redundant, I was inspired by my own struggles with sleep to start a business that would help people wake up feeling their best. While finding suppliers to create the prototypes for my satin pillowcases and beauty products, I started an Instagram page and built an email marketing list even before I officially launched!

“I watched on-demand digital skills webinars from Google and BT after I had put my children to bed and had one-to-one mentoring sessions to look at ways to optimise my website and social media, as well as build a digital marketing strategy. 

“Since then, business has exploded, with customers as far away as New Zealand, and a really loyal and supportive following on social media. I love the relationships and connections I have with the community I’ve built!”

MCR Pathways to provide 300 disadvantaged young Scots with internet access

MENTORING charity, MCR Pathways, is helping to provide a digital lifeline to the country’s most disadvantaged young people living in homes without computers and internet access.

It is feared these young people are being left behind adding to a growing crisis in the attainment gap. MCR will especially focus on school leavers to support them individually through this unprecedented period of uncertainty and anxiety.

Since lockdown in the UK, the award-winning mentoring charity has connected over 1,300 young people with their staff and mentors via video calls, live chat and emails.

As one young person, Chloe, said of her mentor: “You need someone to remind you that you can do it, that you’re going somewhere and that the only thing that will get you there is not giving up.

“That’s what a mentor does. Being isolated in lockdown, it’s even more important to know that the work you’re doing is for something, that someone believes in your future and just that someone actually cares.”

Now, helped with funding from the Scottish Government and JP Morgan, MCR will provide internet accessand computers for up to 300 young people who live in households without access to the vital support network of the school and their mentors.

Working in partnership with local authorities and schools, MCR will extend its comprehensive virtual mentoring programme further across the country.

Cabinet Secretary for Communities, Aileen Campbell, said: “MCR Pathways provides crucial support for children and young people across Scotland so it’s fitting that we are able to provide this funding during Mental Health Awareness Week to allow them to continue to provide this support digitally during the current pandemic.

“We need to continue to support all of our children’s health and wellbeing, but even more so disadvantaged children, who often rely on school life for a safe, nurturing and supportive environment. This additional funding will enable more children and young people and their families to maintain the vital mentoring relationships that have been developed through the programme.”

Iain MacRitchie, founder of MCR Pathways, said: “Since the start of the lockdown, our team has worked tirelessly to maintain the crucial relationships between volunteer mentors and our young people.

“Sadly, lockdown has highlighted deep-rooted inequalities with some young people being unable to access the internet and do any school work from home. With schools to remain closed until after the summer, we needed to act now to prevent young people from feeling isolated and disconnected.

“We are delighted to have secured funding from the Scottish Government and JP Morgan to enable us to provide internet access and equipment for at least 300 young people. The strong relationships between our school staff and young people have enabled us to quickly identify those most in need, and to reconnect them with their mentors.

“This now marks the longest time young people have been absent from school and we have yet to quantify the impact on all sections of society. One-to-one support and the dedication of our committed teachers is desperately needed to limit the serious and significant challenges faced by our disadvantaged young people during lockdown. We simply cannot allow the attainment gap to widen even further.

“Our commitment to helping every care-experienced and disadvantaged young person in Scotland secure equal education and life chances, is stronger than ever. The impact of the virus on our young people is huge and every inequality is exacerbated, but it has also made us even more determined to do whatever it takes for each and every one of them.”

Hang Ho, head of Global Philanthropy, J.P. Morgan, said: “It’s more important than ever to support these young people. In the current environment, the internet is crucial for accessing learning and essential school resources.

“Ensuring young people stay connected to their mentors and continue to benefit from that relationship has never been more critical.”

The programme has received praise from mentors and young people for the range of virtual meeting options it has introduced to facilitate ongoing relationships.

MCR mentor Bernadine Blair recently had her first video call with her mentee whom she normally meets weekly at Bannerman High School, Glasgow. She said: “It was so good to catch up with my mentee.

“To me, it was like catching up with a friend that you haven’t seen for a while and was lovely! We discussed anything and everything.

“I think it is really important to continue face-to-face conversations during these strange and difficult times as there is more pressure on individuals, not only physically with social distancing, but mentally.”

Bernadine’s mentee was equally pleased at the opportunity to meet online: “Meeting by video chat was the best experience I could have had with my mentor, it was great chatting to someone from outside my family.”

At the core of the MCR programme are mentoring sessions between a young person and their mentor who is fully trained to listen and encourage a young person.

Building caring and trusting relationships is at the heart of the recent Care Review Recommendations and MCR mentoring is a highly effective way for this to be implemented.

Mentoring programme rolled out across capital

THE City of Edinburgh Council and award-winning charity, MCR Pathways, have joined forces to expand a life-changing mentoring Programme throughout the capital.

The annoucement follows the recent Care Review’s recommendations which highlighted the vital need for relationship-based practice in schools, including mentoring, to better support young people with experience of the care system.

The Care Review Report states: “Mentoring has a significant positive impact on children and young people who receive it, with evidence that it can improve educational attainment. Schools must also be supported to encourage and develop mentoring relationships for those who would benefit.”

MCR Pathways will help disadvantaged young people in Edinburgh, including those who are care-experienced, to build aspirations and fulfil their potential.

Edinburgh’s commitment is to support and inspire 500 young people, over the next three years – to want to stay on in school, get the most from their education and progress with confidence to college, university and employment of their choice.

The expansion in Edinburgh follows the publication of ScotCen’s independent three-year study on MCR Pathways’ relationship-based mentoring programme.

The study found that MCR mentoring is making a statistically significant impact on educational outcomes for Scotland’s most disadvantaged young people.

ScotCen found mentoring delivers a 25.3 percentage point increase in the number of care-experienced young people progressing to a university, college or a job. In another measure, the attainment gap was closed.

MCR Pathways’ Young Edinburgh Talent has been successfully piloted at Craigroyston Community High School since October 2018 and will immediately be rolled out to a further eight schools – Broughton High School, Drummond Community High School, Forrester High School, Gracemount High School, Leith Academy, Liberton High School, St. Augustine’s High School and Wester Hailes Education Centre.

At the core of the MCR programme are weekly mentoring sessions between a young person and their mentor, who commits an hour of their time to meet in school each week. Mentors are fully trained and give their time to listen and encourage a young person.

Building caring and trusting relationships is at the heart of the Care Review Recommendations and MCR mentoring is a highly effective way for this to be implemented.

MCR Pathways is now looking for more volunteer mentors to get involved and help reach young people across the city. Andrew Kerr, City of Edinburgh Council’s CEO is leading by example with his commitment to become an MCR mentor, whilst encouraging his colleagues to sign up.

Andrew Kerr, chief executive of the City of Edinburgh Council, said: “I am thrilled that many more young people, throughout Edinburgh, will be able to benefit from mentoring and the wider MCR Pathways programme. This programme works and we have already seen the huge success it is having at Craigroyston Community High School.

“I encourage fellow Council colleagues and members of the public to get involved and help us improve the lives and futures of our city’s young people. Together we have the power to help them flourish.

“The recent Care Review highlighted the vital need for positive nurturing relationships to support care-experienced young people and I believe that, with this partnership, MCR Pathways will play a vital role in helping us fulfil our corporate parenting role.”

Established in 2007, MCR Pathways provides support to almost 2,300 young people throughout Scotland each week. Going citywide in Edinburgh is the latest development of MCR Pathways’ national rollout.

The Scottish Government is now being called on to make MCR mentoring a permanent feature of the education system and a right for every care-experienced pupil.

The recently-published Independent Care Review has emphasised the necessity of incorporating education, Third Sector and other caring adults into Scotland’s reformed Care System and giving vital support to schools for them to encourage and develop mentoring relationships.

Iain MacRitchie (above), founder of MCR Pathways, said: “We are absolutely delighted to be partnering with Edinburgh City Council and secondary schools to launch the Young Edinburgh Talent programme in the Capital.

“We are seeing across Scotland the transformational difference that positive relationships and role models can make to young people, not to mention the powerful and positive impact it has on the mentors.

“Our work in Edinburgh is an important and fantastic milestone in our journey. It enables us to help more young people who will flourish with the one:one support an MCR mentor can bring. We are very excited to be working with council colleagues, schools, and our partner organisations in Edinburgh to help our most disadvantaged young people to be determined by their talent and never their circumstances.

“Our vision is that every care-experienced and disadvantaged young person in Scotland gets the same education outcomes, career opportunities and life chances as every other young person. With the strength and depth of our partnerships with Local and National Government, we can make this happen across the country.”

Audrey Cumberford MBE – principal, Edinburgh College, said: “Edinburgh College is really pleased to see the formal introduction of the life-changing work of MCR Pathways to Edinburgh Schools.

“We have been working closely with Dr Iain MacRitchie and his team, over the last 18 months, to create a physical home for the organisation in our Granton Campus and many of our lecturers and support staff have been selected and trained as willing mentors, waiting to be matched to the right young person.

“The college would highly recommend mentoring to all of our educational and industry partners in Edinburgh as a brilliant way to support our young people to rise to their potential!”

Further information on the MCR Pathways programme and how to become a mentor is available at www.mcrpathways.org.

Volunteers will be fully trained – they just need to give an hour per week to change a life.

Case studies

Three students from Craigroyston Community High School

Mentee, Danna, and her mentor, Sarah 

Danna was 14 when she was matched with her mentor, Sarah, a retired university professor. At the time Danna was a quiet student and lacking in confidence.

Danna says: “I was a bit confused about what I wanted to do with my future. But like when I got my mentor it’s kind of opened new doors and I now see the different opportunities and what I can do in the future. I appreciate education a lot more now because I realise that coming to school can actually be extremely beneficial for me.”

Sarah has already noticed a difference in Danna’s confidence and focus and the pair enjoy meeting weekly. Sarah says: “Danna is much more outgoing and she’s been through some tough times and, she’s come through the other side. She’s on track for being the best she possibly can be and also being happy.”

Carol-Ann

Carol-Ann was matched with her mentor, Maddy, last May. At the time, she had poor timekeeping and didn’t always take school seriously. Now, Carol-Ann shares that her mentor is a great listener and helps reassure her when things aren’t going too well. She’s become a lot more engaged with school and the pair work together to overcome challenges and help Carol-Anne focus on her future.

Reece

Reece has just recently met his mentor. He was particularly keen to be matched with someone who has similar creative interests, such as cooking and writing. Reece tells his MCR co-ordinator in the school, Laura Keast, how pleased he is to see his mentor each week, being “one of the best things about school just now” and Laura has already seen a difference in attendance.

Scottish Fire and Rescue Service sign up to support mentoring charity

The Scottish Fire and Rescue Service has helped launch a pioneering partnership which will see uniformed and support staff act as role models to care-experienced and disadvantaged young people across Scotland.

By joining forces with school-based mentoring charity MCR Pathways, the SFRS has become the first emergency service organisation to sign up to the programme. Continue reading Scottish Fire and Rescue Service sign up to support mentoring charity

Search begins for young teen writers and illustrators

Applications open for Scottish Book Trust’s What’s Your Story? programme

Scottish Book Trust, the national charity transforming lives through reading and writing, has announced that applications are now open for their What’s Your Story? programme.

Now in its fifth year, the scheme has so far assisted around 30 young people from across Scotland to develop writing, illustration and performance projects.  Continue reading Search begins for young teen writers and illustrators

Mentor plan for female entrepreneurs

Help to succeed in business

The First Minister Nicola Sturgeon has announced £100,000 of new funding for an initiative aimed at driving entrepreneurship among females in Scotland.

The Scottish Chamber of Commerce will partner with the Scottish Association of Business Women to deliver the ‘Future Female Business Leaders’ programme.

The programme draws on Chambers’ skill and experience in connecting entrepreneurs with established business mentors who will provide them with direct support.

It will offer women help as they move into leadership roles, and includes an element to help to stimulate ‘internationalisation’of Scottish business.

Speaking at the Edinburgh Chamber of Commerce ‘Women in Business’ lunch, the First Minister said: “Helping more women to set up and succeed in business is both an economic and a moral imperative. By encouraging and supporting women to create and grow businesses, we can create greater equality which in turn builds a stronger and fairer economy.

“The Scottish Chambers represent more than 11,000 companies across the country with a pool of over 1,000 mentors dispersed widely across Scotland. We have invested nearly £400,000 this year on projects to support female entrepreneurship, which includes the Chambers’ Future Female Business Leaders programme.

“It is a scheme which will help some of the next generation of women business leaders as they start their careers. And it will also – if my experiences are anything to go by – provide enlightenment and inspiration for the mentors.

“One of the things that I decided to do as an individual two years ago was to become a mentor to a young woman. It is incredibly valuable to share experiences and insights with people from different backgrounds and with different perspectives.”

Dr Liz Cameron, OBE, Chief Executive of the Scottish Chambers of Commerce, welcomed the announcement. “This is a perfect example of playing to the strengths and connectivity of both the public and private sector.

“It is an economic priority to ensure that we create an infrastructure which will unlock the outstanding opportunities which exist for females in the workplace enabling more of us to progress to the very top. It will also be a beacon for others to follow, and at the same time, increase the number of successful businesses run by women to grow and expand their businesses.

“Mentoring will be integral to our focus, but it will be in wider terms of bringing together business leaders and other organisations who want to play a role in this development. We are also excited at bringing in an international dimension, identifying potentially new connections and new orders.”

Liz McAreavey, chief executive of Edinburgh Chamber of Commerce, said: “A drive to support more women to succeed in business is not just morally right, but also proven to generate better performance for businesses.

“More women on boards and in senior positions leads to better innovation, improved sales revenues and margins and increased satisfaction and productivity. For example, McKinsey reports that gender diverse companies are 15 per cent more likely to have financial returns above their national median.

“There is no doubt workplace equality and fairness equals improved business performance. I am delighted with the extra measures announced by the First Minister today and we will work with all engaged parties to ensure they benefit as many women as possible.”

 

Ten vulnerable young people to benefit from 1:1 mentoring

YMCA Edinburgh has secured a £10,000 donation from Aberdeen Standard Investments Charitable Foundation to expand the charity’s one-to-one mentoring services for vulnerable young people aged between 8 to 14 years who do not meet the criteria of ongoing mentoring programmes. Continue reading Ten vulnerable young people to benefit from 1:1 mentoring

First Minister to become ‘First Mentor’!

Young Scot competition offers chance of a lifetime for young women

Aspiring young women aged between 18 and 23 will have the chance to be mentored by First Minister Nicola Sturgeon. The competition, run by Young Scot, will see the successful candidate receive mentoring from the First Minister over a one year period.

The First Minister yesterday called on women in leadership roles to follow her example and become mentors, helping to create a generation of future leaders and greater gender balance in their organisations.

Speaking at the diversity on private sector boards joint partnership event with Highlands and Islands Enterprise, Scottish Enterprise and the Scottish Government in Edinburgh, the FM said:

“Equality for women is at the heart of the Scottish Government’s vision for an equal Scotland. My ambition for all our young people is that they will have a fair chance to succeed, and if they work hard and have the ability, there’s nothing to stop them realising their dreams. It is not acceptable in 2017 for women to be under-represented in senior positions, including in the boardroom.

“That is why our Programme for Government contains ambitious commitments in support of women’s equality, including legislating for gender balance on public sector boards, creating a new Advisory Council on Women and Girls and piloting a Returners Project.

“One of my first actions on becoming First Minister was to appoint a gender-balanced cabinet. Since then, through initiatives such as 50/50 by 2020 and the Scottish Business Pledge, more than 300 businesses in Scotland have committed to achieve gender equality on their boards – and for the first time ever more than half of public sector board appointees are women.

“As well as this, I’m determined to play my personal part by becoming a mentor and I would urge other women in leadership roles to do the same. Together, we can be female role models for the next generation and encourage and empower young women to discover their own leadership potential.”

Louise Macdonald, Chief Executive of Young Scot said: “Supporting young people in realising their career potential and meeting their ambitions is the responsibility of every leader in Scotland. Mentoring is a powerful way of helping young people achieve their goals and will help to create a new generation of positive role models to inspire other young women in the future.

“We’re delighted to support the First Minister and the Scottish Government with this new mentoring programme and we are encouraging as many young women from across Scotland as possible to apply for this amazing opportunity.”

Details of the initiative will be announced soon.