STOCKTON North MP Alex Cunningham, who recently went back to his old school in Darlington as part of national Back to School Week, explains why he believes this is so important.
AS a member of the Education Select Committee, I know the scale of the “aspirations gap” that exists between young people in state schools and those in private schools. While I was saddened, I wasn’t surprised to hear Future First’s finding that private school alumni are twice as likely as state school kids to think that people who go to their school are successful (YouGov, 2014).
That is why I joined the Back to School Week campaign. I know the transformative effect alumni can have on young people’s aspirations in state schools and colleges. Whether it’s in my own constituency, inner London or rural Wales where Back to School Week events took place, an alumni volunteer can make 22 young people more confident that “people like me” can be successful in life by speaking to a group of 30 about their job just once. That’s a success rate of 75 per cent.
The response to Back to School Week (October 13-17) has been fantastic. People up and down the country, ordinary folks from all walks of life, have been joining the growing numbers of alumni who support their old state school or college. Future First, who led the campaign, has over 90,000 people signed up to their alumni network – twice as many as when the campaign ran last year.
The campaign successfully showcased how volunteers, alumni or otherwise, can support young people in school and college – such as with work experience placements, mentoring, in-school support and fundraising. It offered volunteering opportunities through Future First, Inspiring the Future, Brightside Trust, Horses’ Mouth, Mindfull and fundraising support through Hubbub.
Back to School Week 2014 saw BBC Newsreader Fiona Bruce, TV Presenter and Meteorologist Sian Lloyd, and a range of local heroes like a nuclear engineer and a dog handler in the British Army return to where it all started to give their advice to students at their old school. Sitting in their old seats, students could imagine that if it was possible for these people to find jobs they love, it was within their reach too.
Since being re-connected with my old school, above, – formerly Branksome, but now Darlington School of Maths and Science – I’ve been in to give a careers talk to current students and had the pleasure of hosting two engaging teenagers from the school for a week of work experience. I agree completely with Sian Lloyd when she said:
“It was an honour to give something back to the place that gave me so very much. It’s vital that the state sector tunes into the whole ‘old boys/girls network’ thing and takes pride and confidence in doing so.”
As state school graduates we need to do our bit and go back to show the young people who are sitting in our old seats thinking “what’s the point?” that fulfilment after they leave is within their reach, because it was for people like me. We can show them that, as former students, we’re there not only to tell them that it’s possible, but to give them access to the networks that can help them along on their path to success.
Back to School Week may have finished for this year, but the campaign to inspire young people at our old schools and colleges continues.
For more information go to futurefirst.org.uk
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