Author Archives: Valerie

New Springboard Programmes – Greater Belfast Area

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Springboard are currently recruiting young people for new Programmes:

Flyer – Journeys consists of 4 distinct programmes, each tailored to specific needs, aimed at young people aged between 16 – 24 years from across the Greater Belfast area, depending on what programme they choose. Journeys provides young people the opportunity to create positive change both for themselves and their communities. There are four key themes that underpin Journeys which are Personal development, Good Relations, Citizenship and Employability.  

Flyer – YouthStart provides participants aged 16 – 30 assistance to work out their career aspirations and steer through their employability and career pathway.The programme supports individual development to build confidence, overcome barriers and understand their tailored career development ‘map’. The programme can be tailored around the individual through 1-1 support, group work and training to meet specific needs.

Flyer – HeadStart is a Skills for life and work programme working with 16-23* year olds (criteria applies). The programme operates over one year, 4 days per week starting in September.  Young people can gain Level 1 in Youth Work or Level 1 in Business Administration as well as Essential Skills in Maths, English and ICT. Young people will also build key personal and employability skills through work placements.

Flyer – Ignite is a fun based learning programme for 14-17 years olds to get involved in relationship building, social action projects, personal development and confidence building, residentials, new experiences and celebration event.

Participants from both the Journeys and HeadStart programmes can benefit from:

  • £8 daily incentive  
  • Free Travel Card
  • NOCN Qualifications
  • One to One Mentoring
  • Residential and Camps
  • Meet new people
  • Social Action Projects

School Uniform Recycling Toolkit 2024

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The Southern Area School Uniform Recycling Toolkit is a FREE resource for any school, community organisation or group to use to help set up a recycling scheme. Including editable flyers, checklist templates and evaluation tools, this resource can be used across Northern Ireland – download here

For anyone who wishes to use the Toolkit, or for further information, contact Darren Curtis, CYPSP, at localityplanning@ci-ni.org.uk, as we aim to track all usage of the resource to demonstrate the impact of this initiative.

See our 2023 Toolkit Infographic to find out about the impact of last year’s School Uniform Recycling Initiative on schools and organisations.

Changing Energy Related Behaviour Course

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Training for frontline Staff – Thursday 7th March, 9:30am – 12:00pm

Habits and behaviours can be hard to change, but they can have a huge impact on how much a household spends on energy. The course will look at of some of the theories and findings in the field of decision making, focusing specifically on simple practical things they can do to encourage people to act on the energy-related advice they receive.

This course is designed for frontline staff working in a range of organisations who are in a position to provide energy-related advice directly to householders either face-to-face or via the telephone.

Download Flyer Here

All webinars are 2.5 hours and CPD accredited Webinars will be delivered live via Zoom (video conferencing facility) by our expert tutors to small groups to ensure a good level of interaction and support for learners. Participants will require a device with a camera and sound.

Hillsborough Castle and Gardens free subsidised school trip

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Hillsborough Castle and Gardens,  has asked that we make you aware that they are launching a programme for all schoolchildren across Northern Ireland to visit Hillsborough Castle and Gardens for free on a completely subsidised school trip. Given education budgets are under pressure, they wanted to support schools to deliver out of the classroom learning experiences at no cost to them.

In the next few years, their ambition is to ensure that as many as 8,000 pupils per year have access to valuable education resources. We know that the cost of travelling on a school trip can also be prohibitive, so they’ve launched a complimentary Travel Bursary Scheme, that will also help support schools with travel costs.

Hillsborough Castle run facilitated sessions for all Primary, Secondary and SEN schools across the island of Ireland and GB. Their sessions support the local curriculum and explore Hillsborough Castle’s role as a family home, as well as in the political realm, from the 18th to the 21st centuries.

They cover Key Stage 2 with ‘Power and Politics’, Key Stage 3 with ‘The Origins of Northern Ireland’, Key Stage 4 and 5 with ‘Politics, Power and the Path to Peace’, plus Special Educational Needs and Disabilities (SEND) sessions on ‘A Working Home’.  There are also sessions on exploring life as a servant in an Anglo-Irish ‘big house’ getting ready for a Victorian wedding! We know how beneficial spending time outdoors is to the health and wellbeing of young people, and that’s why they are also delighted to be offering more schools free access to our gardens for programmes that explore nature, sustainability, and biodiversity.

They are committed to broadening access to Hillsborough Castle and to making sure it becomes a shared space for everyone. That’s why when they re-open the castle in March, they will also be offering £1 tickets for everyone in receipt of Universal Credit.

For more information contact Victoria Shaw Email: Victoria.Shaw@hrp.org.uk

Operations & Business Support Officer (Mon-Thurs), Historic Royal Palaces | Hillsborough Castle and Gardens, The Square | Royal Hillsborough | Co. Down | BT26 6AG

Take a Healthy Selfie – Check in on Yourself

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Wednesday 7th February saw the online Launch of a new resource to support young people’s emotional wellbeing and mental health in the Southern Health & Social Care Trust Area. The “Take A Healthy Selfie” campaign includes 3 resources to signpost young people, parents/caregivers, school and youth work staff to support services in the Southern area. This resource was launched to coincide with Children’s Mental Health Week.

Originating from Banbridge Locality Planning Group (LPG) the aim was to work with young people to produce simple signposts to key quality-assured services and resources online. Young people from Futureproof, Crisis Café, New Bridge Integrated College and the Epicentre in the Southern area, advised on the themes, content and design for the resources.

The resources are available in electronic form (see links below) and paper copies. To order copies of this free resource, or to learn more of this campaign, contact Darren Curtis, Locality development Officer (Southern Area), at localityplanning@ci-ni.org.uk