Course Spotlight - Gateway to College
Breadalbane Academy has been working with UHI Perth and the Perth and Kinross School / College Partnership to access a tailored Personal Development Programme.
“This course has made me believe in myself more and has given me ideas about my future.”
The programme was designed and delivered by Kate Lamb from the New Opportunities department at UHI Perth to support the needs of its students. It focuses particularly on wellbeing, emotional literacy, and personal development. It aims to enable students’ participation, learning and positive experience and support learners to reach their goals and feel emotionally well. We asked Kate to tell us a bit more 👇
Teenage years are an important time for physical, cognitive, and psychosocial changes which means this can also be a crucial time for promoting and supporting positive mental health and emotional wellbeing. A young person’s emotional health and wellbeing can impact upon their learning and cognitive growth as well as their social health, their physical health, and their ability to develop, thrive, be resilient and enjoy life. This course strives to offer a safe and calm environment, and a fun and peaceful atmosphere, where symptoms of emotional ill-health are less likely.
“This class has always had a happy vibe. We talk about how to look after ourselves and improve our wellbeing.”
Many young people today struggle with distress and worry, impacting on their lives. A key part of supporting their education and personal growth is promoting emotional wellbeing and empowering young people to think, learn and build their lives with inspiration, enthusiasm, and confidence. This course encourages students to express their thoughts and feelings through creative activities and time outdoors.
“The atmosphere is always calm and kind. We talk about lots of different ways to cope mentally and how to deal with our worries.”
Self-worth is how we think and feel about ourselves. It means feeling good about yourself, your abilities, and your opinions. Building up your confidence can take time. This course challenges young people to identify their skills and best qualities, to try new things, to talk about themselves in a safe and supportive group setting and to boost their self-esteem.
“It made us realise nice things about ourselves. We’ve talked about our personal qualities and all the skills that we are good at which has been great for boosting our self-esteem and feeling more confident.”
Anxiety is that feeling you get when you’re threatened or worrying about something, like getting a funny feeling in your stomach or feeling your heart beating fast. Almost everyone gets anxious sometimes and it feels different for everyone. It can sometimes make things feel worse than they actually are and can feel overwhelming. This course supports young people to understand and manage their feelings and equips them with strategies to regulate emotions so they can cope with and enjoy everyday life.
Wellbeing refers to our overall health – that we feel good emotionally, mentally, and physically. This course guides students through healthy habits they can make and establish in their own lives to take care of themselves and be their ‘best self’. It offers an insight into some mental health issues and provides a reassuring and nurturing environment where young people can feel comfortable sharing and supporting each other.
“We spent lots of time outside which was really good for relieving stress.”
“We’ve been having lots of new opportunities and having freedom to choose some of the activities and do fun and creative work.”
This programme strives to demonstrate that our wellbeing is continually changing; we all have good days and bad days, some days we might feel better or worse than others, and there are things we can do to look after ourselves and improve our overall emotional, mental, and physical wellbeing.
“This course has been a good chance to make new friends and to get to know different people from our year group that we wouldn’t normally hang out with.”
“Improving our communication skills. We’ve been working together as a group lots which usually I wouldn’t like but the atmosphere is supportive and calm, and the lecturer is kind, so it’s actually been good to interact with each other.”
Lorna Libreri, Depute Headteacher at Breadalbane Academy, says:
“The Gateway to College course is now running for a second year at Breadalbane Academy. We identified a need for this type of course for our young people and the UHI Perth School / College Partnership were able to fully support us by creating a bespoke course to meet the needs of our learners. The course is now fully embedded and is highly praised by the young people on the course. We look forward to continued working with UHI Perth on the Gateway to College programme to support each new cohort of learners as they progress through to senior phase.”
