Over 300 UEL students train to help at-risk youth

The Social Coach Leadership Programme (SCLP) is a structured development programme, training existing youth professionals and role model volunteers with the language, tools and engagement strategies to deliver sports, arts and socially based activities for young people aged between 10 and 19.

Mr Thompson set up the charity in Manchester 26 years ago following the shooting of 14-year-old Benji Stanley in Moss Side. The Youth Charter's key messages are that sport and the arts can be used to divert disaffected youth from crime, by building young people's self-confidence and skills, a message being taken on board by the government.

"The Youth Charter tackles educational non-attainment, health inequality, anti-social behaviour and the negative effects of crime, drugs, gang related activity and racism by applying the ethics of sporting and artistic excellence," Mr Thompson added.

“This extraordinary workshop heralds a new era with UEL and its partnership with Youth Charter that will genuinely counter the crisis on our streets. Here we are encouraging community development through sport, and we know sport, culture, arts and digital activity saves lives. As well as helping youngsters to keep off the streets by engaging them in sport and other activities, our new 'float like a butterfly Social Coach Leadership Programme' enriches, empowers and enables young people.

"This is a real example of what staff, students and the community can achieve in the way of the art of the possible. You can't stop drugs and you can't stop experimentation," Mr Thompson told students. "But you can empower people through sport. Sport and the arts are a vaccine, an antidote to violence and drugs."

Mr Thompson said he was a key example of social coaching. Through his own experience of excelling in sport as a five-time world karate champion, he said he was able to help those like him who had natural talent but needed positive role models to realise their potential.  The workshops heard how some of the students had lost friends through violence on the streets.

Student Elliott Webb said, "It was seeing violence and drugs on the streets and friends being killed that made me want to be a social coach and to come on this coaching day. I want to be able to spin it on its head and turn things round so that instead of knives and violence, we can turn things into a positive.

"I feel there is a need to change things by working in the community in areas where crime and anti-social behaviour is rife, so that I can make a change for the better. I have been surrounded by people living in a gang culture, and I have messed up in the past, but have turned things round, so now I want to take a positive approach through this social coaching and help others in the community."

Another UEL student, Joan Eitzenberger, agreed that young people needed more positive influences. She wanted to become a social coach to encourage and motivate others. "I believe that motivation and life purpose is very important. I grew up in different cultural backgrounds and I think I can help others through my own experiences. Social coaches are very important so we can emphasise to young people the need for good values and positive influences through sport and other activities."

"The first social coaches have now been recruited and we will see them volunteering two hours a week. This will enable young people to have somewhere to go, something to do and someone to show them how to develop their mental, physical and emotional life resilience. With these trained coaches, we are aiming to have holiday camps and summer camps to provide sporting and other activities for young people."

"The day's coaching included workshops for all 300 students, most of whom were trainee teachers at UEL, wo have come from the community and who will go on to help those in their community," said acting dean of Professional Services, Dr Carrie Weston.

They also heard a motivational talk from the chief executive of the Commonwealth Games Federation, David Grevemberg, who gave a personal reflection of working with disaffected young people globally.

More students will take part in another Social Coach Leadership Programme workshop at the University in May.