St Basils held its Annual Awards night on 18th October 2011 to celebrate and formally recognise the educational achievements of the young people St Basils works with.
The event held at Fazeley Studios, Birmingham was a chance for St Basils staff and supporters as well as some family members of the young people to congratulate them on passing accredited courses they have undertaken this year including Life Skills, Community and Youth Work awards.
At the graduation style ceremony, the young people wore caps and gowns and were applauded on stage as they received their awards from the Lord Mayor of Birmingham Anita Ward.
St Basils’ theme of the year is “Care About Us”, one of the three key themes young members of the National Youth Reference Group St Basils co-ordinates identified should be a priority for organisations working with homeless young people. Also in attendance to show their support of St Basils and young people were Elaine Elkington, Strategic Director of Housing and Communities and West Midlands Chief Fire Officer Vijith Randeniya OBE.
This year 58 young people from St Basils completed the Life Skills qualification which is accredited by the Open College Network (OCN). LifeSkills is delivered in a similar way to NVQs; young people build a portfolio of evidence to illustrate their development in core areas such as money management, cooking and healthy living and is an opportunity for young people to develop skills in key areas in order for them to increase their self confidence, skills and ability to sustain their own tenancy once they have moved on from St Basils.
12 young people have also passed an ‘Introduction to Youth Work’ qualification provided by Birmingham City Council. The course was run in a mixed setting with staff, allowing attendees to learn from each other and appreciate a range of perspectives.
Several young people were also recognised for taking part in an OCN accredited ‘Community Representative’ e-learning course provided by the Tenant Participation Advisory Service. Students examined case studies and researched their own communities in order to develop a greater understanding of the challenges communities can face.
Four young people gave presentations at the awards ceremony detailing what they had most enjoyed about these courses and how they feel these qualifications will benefit them in the future. The evening closed with a performance from a young person who sang “Someone like you”.
Jean Templeton, Chief Executive of St Basils said of the evening:“It was a fabulous evening when families, partners and supporters came together to celebrate the achievements of young people, volunteers and long-serving employees of St Basils. We know that being cared about, helps you to care about yourself and others and gives you hope for the future and tonight was a brilliant illustration of just how much everyone cares.”
Added October 2011
