At Ormiston Trust driving positive social change is fundamental to our ethos and work.
A big part of this work is our focus on youth social action (YSA) to help increase young people’s social and academic development, agency, character and life chances - and, in doing so, have a positive impact on both our schools and wider communities.
That is why in 2017 we launched #WeWill, a youth social action programme that has so far supported over 20,000 students across more than 150 schools, with projects ranging from schools hosting performing arts programmes to schools collecting and delivering food for the local elderly community.
Since October 2023 we have been distributing resources and free step-by-step guides to help schools embrace high-quality YSA programmes themselves.
5 steps for success with youth social action
As discussed in the first article of this two-part series, we believe in a five-step model to help schools successfully embed high-quality YSA programmes at scale.
As a quick recap:
- Step 1: Inspire. This is about inspiring students, who will drive the project forward. Training for staff and students then helps to prepare them for each of the subsequent steps.
- Step 2: Explore. This is the exploration stage, as students investigate social issues and potential solutions, giving them agency and ownership.
- Step 3: Plan. This step is about encouraging students to think laterally about their project and develop critical thinking skills. Ongoing engagement between students and school and community stakeholders strengthens plans, which are then debated and finalised before launch.
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From step 3 we move on to step 4 (Act) and step 5 (Reflect).
Step 4: Act
Once the plan has been agreed, the next step is to act. To do this effectively, students will need to follow a clear set of tasks, have agreed roles, manage their budgets and ensure that they have the right equipment and resources available.
Their teamwork, problem-solving and communication skills will be essential, as will their ability to react to unforeseen circumstances. They will need to ensure that they know what looks great and hold themselves accountable for progress.
Students reporting on ongoing achievements, within their own team and to wider stakeholders, and adapting their plans as appropriate, helps to keep everybody on the same page.
The highest safeguarding standards will need to be in place and must be closely monitored by school staff and the students themselves. But, ensuring that these standards are not compromised, young people should be allowed to make mistakes and learn from them.
As students near completion of the project, they will collect evidence to show that, as far as possible, every one of their team has had a chance to complete their task and contribute to making a difference.
Step 5: Reflect
The final step of the programme is to reflect on the project once it has been completed, and celebrate success.
Reflection helps students to appreciate the positive elements of their project while also identifying ways to improve future initiatives.
Reflection - on both the outcomes achieved and the process undertaken - is as important a step as any other, and is a valuable life skill that will ensure students learn from the YSA programme, in terms of the difference they make to others and the impact it has on themselves.
While there can be a temptation to move straight on to the next project once one is finished, reflection is what will truly embed the impacts of the YSA programme.
Reflection can be done best in two ways.
The first is through a reflection survey that every student completes to consider “What went well?” and “What would we do differently?’’ These questions, discussed as a group, will trigger and start to embed reflective thought processes and help students to recognise what they have achieved and what new or improved ideas they can deliver to drive positive social change.
The second step involves students celebrating their success, sharing their achievements with their school and community and thanking all those who helped them to achieve their goals.
We have seen this five-point process work and achieve powerful change in young people and within the communities they serve.
As outlined above, to help more schools do this sort of work through our five-point plan, we have made free resources available that can help schools, trusts and education groups facilitate YSA projects as easily as possible.
Hopefully, using these resources and the five-point checklist for implementing projects, the key question to ask now is: what type of positive impact would our students like to make?
James Murray is CEO of Ormiston Trust
