FUTURE TALENTED Autumn Term 2018 - Issue 1 | Page 82

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 Gatsby Benchmarks ADAM RAMGOOLIE, 16 LONDON CHARACTER VIRTUES DEVELOPED: • Hope/optimism • Compassion • Leadership • Resilience, perseverance, determination • Courage STEPHEN TUTIN, 20 GLOUCESTER CHARACTER VIRTUES DEVELOPED: • Leadership • Openness • Confidence • Communication skills • Empathy What have you done through social action? I never had support to get involved in ‘traditional’ volunteering, but managed to craft my own opportunities. Mainly using the internet to form the framework which didn’t exist in my local area, I’ve created, organised and administrated several online groups; for example, to provide a safe space for people with autism. How has this helped your career? It allowed me to get my dream job with EDF Energy. I was told my CV stood out as I could back up skills I claimed I had with evidence that I’d demonstrated them in the real world. That gave the interviewers specific examples to ask about, which I felt more confident answering than many of the generic questions. The confidence, skills and insight I developed from social action also enabled and encouraged me to become involved with steering groups, volunteer for professional institutes and take a lead in a number of areas. I’ve made contacts, developed skills and had fun experiences. What skills have you learned? The biggest benefit is a large boost in confidence, as you learn how to adapt to different situations. This helps you learn faster, do better at exams and make new friends. Another key skill is leadership: how to inspire and organise people and resolve disputes. I gained these skills creating and running an online community from the ground up and they have enabled me to take up higher-profile optional roles at work. Through my online community, I learned how to communicate updates and changes, about branding, and how to create a leadership team to support me in running the group. I even organised small group challenges, which gave me some teamwork skills. I made mistakes, but that’s how you learn. 82 // WELLBEING “Social action gave me the belief that, with hard work and a vision, we can all create change” What does social action mean to you? Through social action, I went from being a bullied child suffering from depression to a happy and confident public speaker. Its impact on volunteers and those who benefit cannot be underestimated. Social action gave me the belief – in myself and society – that, with hard work and vision, we can all create change. What have you done as part of #iwill? I heard about the campaign through Team London, the Mayor of London’s programme encouraging social action among young people, and applied to become an #iwill ambassador, encouraging young people to get into youth social action. From speaking at the 2018 Character Education Conference in front of teachers for the first time to being appointed a young adviser to committees, I’ve shared my story and youth suggestions that have been listened to. Being treated with dignity by adults has been a privilege.  How has social action helped your career?  It has helped me learn how to act and advocate among professionals, improving my confidence, speaking and leadership skills. I’ve started a youth advocacy group – Get2Learn – to engage youth in the movement towards social integration. We’re holding the Fair Education Youth Summit on the status of social mobility in education to highlight the importance of youth voice and young people’s insights on addressing educational inequality. ABOUT #IWILL The #iwill campaign promotes social action among 10-20 year-olds, including campaigning, fundraising and volunteering. More than 875 business, education and voluntary sector partners have committed to embedding social action into the lives of young people. Find out how to embed youth action into your school or college at: bit.ly/EducationYouthSocialAction