On Wednesday 8th July 2009 a conference event called 'Talent Matters' was run as part of the national 'SHINE' week celebrating the talent that the United Kingdom has to offer.
One of the students from the 'Coaching for Success' programme at Futures Community College was invited to speak on stage in front of everyone. Annalise Dickinson offered to be that student and she represented both the school and 'Youth at Risk' who run the Coaching for Success programme.
Annalise did state, "I wouldn't have offered to do it a year ago before joining the Coaching for Success programme". Her personal confidence & willingness to help and represent others has grown greatly over the previous 12 months.
The conference was big. An audience of about 200 people. We did not expect to walk into a TV studio environment where all the speakers throughout the day were being filmed. Annalise had shown her commitment however and did not allow the extra pressure to phase her. Beki Martin of 'Youth at Risk' prepared Annalise to be on stage & supported her during the presentation.
Annalise spoke of her attitude before joining the programme and of how the experiences she has had have influenced since. She shared the stage with two other young people who had been involved in another 'Youth at Risk' project who also spoke of how they were, how they are now and what they intend to be in future.
After Annalise stepped down from the stage other speakers stepped up. Next were three university students who had been sent away to India, China & Brazil to discover what their education system was like and comparing life in general to how life is in the UK. They had some fascinating insights and they were followed by Will Hutton of the Work Foundation who also spoke about the global stage and where this country stands in it, especially regarding the future of our young people and how they will need to use their talents and skills.
Annalise did us proud and she left an excellent impression with everyone there.
I would like to give special thanks to Miss Ames, Mr Bownes, Mr Munt, Mrs Colman, Mr Law, Miss Sigfrid, Mrs Aylott & Miss Lester for making it possible for Annalise to attend this event.
Article written by: M. Hillier
