Project 2 - Everton in the Community - Early Intervention

Funded by the National Lottery Community Fund

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Our second project involved working with young people at risk of exclusion from mainstream education. 

 

The second course of Podcasting for Positive Change started in March 2024 on Friday mornings. It lasted over several months across six sessions, sometimes with several weeks between sessions to assess longer term impact of the Everton in the Community (EITC) Early Intervention course. The final session was in late May 2024. As with the first course done with EITC, it was decided that six sessions were preferrable to the original ten planned and we will take this on board for future provision, as these shorter and more focused courses seem to be more effective. The sessions were on average every two weeks to allow progress to be made by the students in other sessions with EITC; an awarding winning charity that helps vulnerable people and is attached to Everton Football Club. North and South Education CIC did a previous project with EITC, and it went so well we agreed to do another – this time with what might be deemed as more challenging students. EITC have excellent facilities with plenty of space and furniture that is functional for podcast recording and interviewing.

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The young people who took part are either at risk of exclusion or have been permanently excluded from primary school (so are 11 and under). There is little if any charitable support for people struggling in mainstream education at this young age in the Liverpool area. We have worked with a total of five students, with the support of two excellent EITC staff, who were with us for the sessions, contributed to recordings, and did work with the young people between podcasting sessions.  There was an original concern that some of these students might not engage with the project, but Everton in the Community are very relaxed and open and put the responsibility and the choice on to the students. The students also responded positively to the EITC course and the podcasting and the skill development they have been involved in. We set up a programme that would involve recording their experiences of homelife, education and life generally and at how participants see the world. Self-reflection was central to this course, and it was great to see the students make progress and open up with more confidence across the project. We also looked at how the students made progress by doing the extracurricular activities and alternative provision through the EITC Charity, as they engaged with these courses. The students have also helped with script writing and have interviewed each other and some of the staff at EITC. They have come on leaps and bounds, not just with their work with EITC, but in terms of their confidence speaking and communicating, interviewing, reflecting, and doing work between podcasting sessions to develop themselves. It has been heartening to see them talking about issues more openly and turning the lens on themselves. They have spoken about their frustrations with education, their challenges and learning difficulties (some are neurodivergent), and of how they are sometimes violent, aggressive, disruptive, and defiant. Exploring these themes and recording and editing them has not only helped them to develop as individuals who are more emotionally literate, but develop transferable skills such as communication and confidence, and technical and podcasting skills.

 

One of the students said early on how he often just walks out of class when he doesn’t want to do something yet does not want to walk out of any of the sessions we have done as he finds them relevant and helpful. As the EITC course developed the staff have tailored the course to meet the needs and interests of the students. The feedback from staff and students was very positive. These are young people who for whatever reason cannot cope at school and are often on the edges of society and not engaging with educational institutions. Government figures say that there were over 3000 permanent exclusions in the UK in the spring term of 2024, up from just over 2000 the year before. To see such positive engagement with this project is very heartening indeed. The same student who said he used to just walk out said in our last session that when he goes into his next school, he will not just react negatively to any instruction but will keep calm. When asked why he would do this, he said that this course had gotten him to think differently about things. Another student reflected on when he had to take responsibility for cleaning something up in one of the sessions, and that this would have been harder in a school setting, whereas as part of the EITC provision, he felt he would lose out by not taking this responsibility. This was Active Citizenship in action, and the students reflected on their impact on other people and how they might make better contributions to the learning of others in class and group settings.

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The final podcast of this podcasting course will be shared with the students and used by North and South Education CIC and Everton in the Community in the future. This charted their progress, their hopes and fears, and their lived experiences of education and life so far.

 

The participants were given certificates at the end of project highlighting skills and competencies.     

 

All the five respondents said that the course had been ‘extremely effective’ at helping them to learn about podcast production, and all students were given a tutorial booklet on how to make and edit podcasts using the Audacity App. All spoke positively about the development of social skills, citing better communication and in one case, ‘It’s helped me a lot in willingly talking about my struggles and problems.’ Although we did kept sessions snappy and had regular breaks a lot of the participants said they struggled with concentration at times. Keeping the sessions short and having regular breaks seemed to help with students who might have issues with concentration, and this can be factored in moving forward. In terms of recommending the podcast course, all responses were positive, with one saying it was a ‘safe space’ to talk about ‘problems or issues with school and at home.’  All students strongly agreed or agreed that they enjoyed sharing their opinions and talking about issues relevant to them.

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In terms of being likely to continue podcasting in the future, the responses ranged from neutral to extremely likely, with no negative comments on this point, which was heartening. All agreed that they had enjoyed the sessions, and all agreed that they had improved because of doing the podcasting course. No improvements were suggested.

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The staff were also keen to communicate with the relevant schools in relation to what had gone well and with recommendations to help the students when back in the mainstream environment. Some were not attending school at all, while two were doing school part time, and working with EITC on at least one or two days a week. Some of the students were also staying at EITC from early morning and into the early evening doing youth clubs, which was great to see. Some of these students lasted only short amounts of time in the classroom and went home at lunchtime, if they made it that far.

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In our final summative podcast recording, which will be released on our website, and provided to the Lottery, the students spoke about how much they loved the trips out done by EITC, including the visit to Crosby Beach, which they loved. It was so nice to see how just a small trip to a local place of nature had left such an impact with the young people. They also visited the Football Museum in Manchester and spoke about that. Part of the EITC course also involved studying mental health, emotions, homelessness (including a sleep out!!!) and social media. The students spoke about this and showed real insight and self-reflection.

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LG, one participant, said, ‘teachers know I can lose control…anger/ADHD…and the teacher treats me differently…but ADHD and Autism are not an excuse…you just learn differently.’ I felt that this was a real breakthrough from LG, and at the age of 10 he had a good grasp of how the education system often struggles to help those who are neurodiverse. He also takes full responsibility for his actions and acknowledges that the teacher is seeking to help him, even if bound by what the curriculum demands are. LG further added, ‘even if I told my teacher how I viewed school they won’t change anything.’ Such insight from such a young person was deeply profound. Several participants spoke of how they think more of their emotions since doing the EITC course and the self-reflection as part of the podcasting course.

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What EITC provides for young people who are referred to them, and what the staff do, is fantastic, and is styled to make the students feel comfortable and valued, but also to challenge them. The environment at EITC is perfect for those who are struggling in the mainstream. It plugs a huge gap. It was a pleasure to work with such committed and enthusiastic people and staff, and the young people who responded so well and positively. Some of the participants got places elsewhere during the course but attendance was excellent, although some students missed one or two sessions.

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We spoke to one of the participants teachers at the end of the course. She said that he was happy and proud to be doing the EITC course, and that he always came in on the Monday (after the EITC course on the Friday) in a positive frame of mind. She also said he was considering a career in podcasting, which was very nice to hear! His teacher also said that it was unfortunate that the course was now ending, as she is seeing not only short-term gains, but long-term progress that is kicking in too. She said he was a ‘different child’ and now opens up about his emotions. His teacher said that EITC had been great for him, and that he was proud and grateful for the chance to do it. This was fantastic.