A mixed comprehensive school located in the South Manchester suburb of East Didsbury, is running two innovative mentoring programmes backed by HRH The Prince of Wales to inspire and raise the aspirations of its pupils.
Led by Shana Ali, a teacher in the Business, Law and Economics department, Parrs Wood High School has partnered with Mosaic, HRH The Prince of Wales’ mentoring charity, to deliver its Enterprise Challenge and Secondary School mentoring programmes.
The Enterprise Challenge is a national competition that aims to inspire knowledge, raise aspirations, confidence, self-efficacy and long-term employability among secondary school pupils. Supported by volunteer mentors from the business community, students compete for six weeks in an online business game where they must develop, market and sell a new product.
The winning schools from regions across the UK then pitch their business idea to a panel of esteemed judges in a Dragon’s Den style format. Last month, a team of students from Parrs Wood High School came 3rd in the 2016 North West Regional Final, which was won by a team of pupils from Altrincham Grammar School for Girls.
A multi-cultural and multi-faith school, Parrs Wood accommodates around 1,500 pupils. The students participating in the Secondary School programme come from very diverse backgrounds, including Mukhtar Adeyemi, who is Nigerian; Akam Ahmed, who is Kurdish; Kaisar Hayat, who is Pakistani; and Ali Karimi Shahidi who is Iranian; demonstrating how Mosaic helps young people from all backgrounds realise their potential.
Mukhtar Adeyemi, 16, explained how Mosaic’s work has helped him. He said: “The mentoring programmes helped build my confidence and I even had the chance to speak in public in front of dozens top professionals. I’m more confident at asking questions without the fear of being judged and learnt I am actually an extrovert person. We are all different and can still be successful if we can understand the way we work and what brings out the best in us.”
For Akam Ahmed, 15, it was the opportunity to visit a real working environment that really struck a chord. He said: “We went on a trip to Barclays and saw what goes on in the control room and got a look into how big businesses work. Our mentors showed us what we would need to do to get a job at a company like this, which really got us thinking about our life. They also helped us become more confident in front of others so that people might want to hire us in the future.”
Shana Ali said: “Recognising the contribution that reputable outside agencies can make to our learners, Parrs Wood began working with Mosaic in 2013 as part of a multi-faceted approach to narrow the performance and opportunity gap between certain cohorts of students.
“By the end of this year, we will have seen over 100 students engage in Mosaic mentoring and the Enterprise Challenge programme. I have personally seen our students not only develop their soft skills, but also seen a difference in their academic performance. Our students have been lucky to meet wonderful people along their Mosaic journey who have helped open up new worlds for them. I hope that when the time is right, they help open up a new world for someone else too.”
Anne Earley, Mosaic North West’s Regional Manager, commented: “We are thrilled that Parrs Wood High School shares our commitment to raising the aspirations of young people in the region. To hear the students talk so positively about the impact the mentoring has had on their lives is inspiring and I’m sure many will go on to be our business leaders of the future.”
