Making the Grade" Project Report - March 2008

The aim of the project was to help people who developing their CV, in filling out application forms for jobs, giving careers guidance or are interested in venturing into self employment. The purpose of this programme is to help individuals to develop the skills required to acheive real success.
The workshops were in bite size chunks which made it easier for the individuals to digest the information. There were10 sessions over 5 days with lunch and all resource material provided.

TARGET POPULATION

Our target was for 30 people to attend the full week

FUNDING

The funding for the project was received from the High Street and Derby Youth Group as well as Bolton at Home

MARKETING

All the mosques were informed of the project and posters were displayed in mosques. Various organisations were informed such as the Hindu Forum, Interfaith Council, B.R.A.S.S, The Nightingale Centre, and various community organisations.. We also advertised the project using the media. The article came in the Bolton Evening News, the Bolton Scene, we also visited many community groups to inform them of the sessions.

THE WEEK

The sessions were held in the first week of the Easter holiday so people who had work or school commitments during the rest of the time wouldn’t miss out. Each day had a different agenda and each participant will be accredited with AQA achievements.

Day One (Monday 17th March)

This was the first day of the project. Over 25 people enrolled on to the course on the first day. The agenda for the day was to look at entrepreneurship skills and business plans. All the participants were put into groups with people they didn't know and came up with a business plan and then presented their work to the rest of the participants. As well as receiving AQA achievements, the young people who also participated will also be getting a Bronze Youth Achievement Award.

Day Two (Tuesday 18th March)

This day was focused around CV writing, and helped get the participants the best CV, it looked at their skills and achievements and how to put it down on paper.

Day Three (Wednesday 19th March)

We looked at filling out application forms and interviews. All participants took part in group discussions on how they could do these tasks, and what they should in their application forms. They then did a role play with one another and asked typical interview questions.

Day Four (Thursday 20th March)

The participants did some tasks around leadership, and going into Higher Education. Anne Higham from the University of Bolton came along to talk to the participants about Aimhigher and studying further after college.

Day Five (Friday 21th March)

Today's session was looking at the whole week, and evaluating the training session, what could be done better, what the participants enjoyed, what they didn't enjoy etc. They did a journey plan of how and where they were at the beginning of the week and what stage they were at the end. Below are some pictures of some of the participants illustrations.

Conclusion

The project showed to be a great success for the participants who wanted advice. The feedback that was received was positive and all the sessions were well received by the participants.