Staff from State Street worked with some of ThinkForward’s young people at Swanlea School in East London to record a podcast on issues surrounding mental health.

They discussed the prevalence of mental health difficulties in different groups, what mental health issues can look like, and the various social factors that contribute to the mental health landscape in the modern age.

Young people learnt about what is involved in producing a podcast, including all the work behind the scenes preparing for the moment when they finally hit the record button.

The result is an incredibly thoughtful, articulate and insightful look into one of the most pressing health issues facing our society.

ThinkForward’s coach Ash said he was also proud of the two hosts of the podcast who spoke in front of their entire year group in an assembly to promote the project. “Even I was a little nervous so for them to be calm, clear and confident enough to do it, much kudos to them.”

You can listen to the podcast here:

July saw graduation events taking place for ThinkForward’s Class of 2019 in London and Nottingham. The graduating cohort have spent five years on ThinkForward developing their work-readiness skills. They took the time to reflect on their experiences and celebrate their journeys through education and on to their next step.

The London event took place at Islington Platform on July 10^th and was facilitated by some of ThinkForward’s own alumni. The evening included a motivational speaker, reflections from coaches on the last five years, and even some spoken word poetry.

The happy ThinkForward Nottingham team celebrate their class of 2019

Nottingham’s graduation on July 19^th at the Hilton Hotel Nottingham was organised by the graduating cohort themselves. The evening featured many emotional farewells as coaches and young people said goodbye after so many years of working together.

Ashley McCaul, ThinkForward’s CEO, reflected on the optimism at the events: “As we say goodbye to our 2019 graduating group I’m struck by the excitement and enthusiasm of our young people as they take their next steps in their lives. It was wonderful to hear the emotion and passion from our coaching teams who have been working with many of these young people for five years and their hopes for their young people’s future endeavours.”

“Our young people are progressing to a wide range of destinations from University to full time employment. I’m also really proud of the willingness of our graduates to remain engaged with ThinkForward through our alumni programme. This is a testimony to the quality of relationships developed throughout their participation in the five-year coaching programme.”

Everyone at ThinkForward would like to say a huge congratulations to all our graduates and wish you the best of luck as you take the next step into apprenticeships, higher education, or work. Everything we do at ThinkForward is centred around empowering you to create your own future, so we are so proud to see what amazing young adults you have grown into. All the best and stay in touch!

Thanks to Shamima Chowdhury, one of ThinkForward’s alumni, for the photos at the London Graduation Event.