JoeEdwards

‘It meant I wasn’t on my own.’ What is Mind The Gap? Mind The Gap is a Soulscape project designed to help young people make a happy and successful transition from primary to secondary school. Over eight years, Mind The Gap has provided support for thousands of young people – through this project, we have now worked with almost all of the current secondary school students in Wokingham Town and more in the wider area. How does Mind The Gap work? Soulscape trains and equips teams of volunteers to visit year 6 pupils at primary school during their last Summer term. Volunteers lead workshops and group activities, get to know pupils and help them to understand and prepare for the changes [...]

What is Inside Out? Inside Out is Soulscape’s creative arts mental health project for young people. It was first commissioned by Bracknell Council in 2016. It aims to give young people a greater awareness of mental health and provides them with an enjoyable opportunity to express themselves through professionally-led creative art sessions. 'I don’t want today to finish.' How does Inside Out work? Part one is an introduction to mental health. It lasts around one hour and takes place in a classroom. Through games and exercises, young people identify positives and negatives that affect the way they feel inside, and begin to recognise that although people may look happy on the outside, they may be hiding a completely different [...]

‘It changed my life when I found out what I was good at. Now I’m learning to put the past behind me.’ – yr 9 pupil, ‘Who Am I?’ REAL lesson. What is REAL? REAL stands for Relationships, Esteem, Aspiration and Lifestyle. REAL lessons provide space for young people to explore real-life issues that concern them; for example ‘body image and the media’, ‘what makes me unique’, or the ‘consequences of sexting’. How does a REAL workshop work? REAL workshops are not sit-down lessons. They employ a variety of activities in order to present each topic in the most appropriate way and are designed to appeal to a variety of different learning styles. A workshop may include dramatic [...]

CARE stands for Creation, Awareness, Recycling and Educating. It’s our creative project addressing the anxiety and passion that young people have about climate change and the environment, and putting them to good use. What is CARE? CARE is a space for young people to share what they already know about environmental issues, explore how they feel about these issues and consider what positive steps they can take to make a difference. It’s also a creative project, where they can use art to express their worries and passions and to make a difference by educating the people around them. How does CARE work? A local professional artist is helping Soulscape to deliver the CARE project. The students create individual pieces of art, enabling them [...]

‘I was a child again with no worries.’ – yr 7 response to PAUSE. What is PAUSE? PAUSE is Soulscape’s interactive prayer space for young people at school. Carving out space during the busy school day for personal reflection and prayer, it invites young people of all faiths and none to think about what and who is important in their lives. There are opportunities to remember people loved and lost, opportunities to explore hopes and dreams and opportunities to recognise and let go of regrets. PAUSE is primarily a space for personal exploration, time to ‘be’, an opportunity to stop looking at the clock. How does PAUSE work? PAUSE takes place in two adjacent classrooms. Soulscape volunteers remove school desks and chairs and [...]

‘What I like about Soulscape is that they are not teachers; their workshops are different to, and complement, the work we do in the classroom.’ – Head of RE, St. Crispins. What is REvive? REvive helps schools bring the RE curriculum to life. REvive workshops are not sit-down classes, but instead offer a variety of active and stimulating activities that challenge and question. From sharing real-life stories and points of view, to getting out and about visiting different places of worship, the aim is to awaken curiosity and interest and to create space for young people to explore a wide range of ideas and opinions. We cover topics on the GCSE RE syllabus, like abortion, euthanasia, divorce and [...]

In our local area, young people looking for belonging are being drawn into groups and gangs who deal drugs. Give and Take is our preventative programme, creatively addressing the issues involved from primary school onwards. In 2018, Thames Valley Police sent a letter to parents of secondary school students across Wokingham. They reported, “We have seen a rise in anti-social behaviour across the area involving young people, and many of the issues appear to be linked to drug and alcohol misuse. The drug use appears to be based around cannabis and an increased use of the drug Xanax.” Chief Inspector Sarah Grahame recently said: “Wokingham is a very lovely place, but we do have criminals coming to exploit children [...]