Working with SCCYP
A Day in the Life of...
Senior Participation Worker
Kevin BrowneBecause I live in Paisley but work in Edinburgh, my day usually starts quite early but sometimes Im lucky enough to be able to do a Childrens Rights workshop in the West, so this means I get a few extra minutes in bed!
For example, I recently ran a workshop at St Johns Primary School in Barrhead ?– just a few minutes from where I live ?– so I was able to have a nice long-lie, a leisurely breakfast and a watch of the TV. Unfortunately I got a bit too relaxed, forgot the time and had to make a mad-rush for the workshop.
Outside the weather was terrible, but when I arrived at the school I couldnt believe all the young people were running around in the wind and rain and looked to be having a great time - when I went to primary school the teachers used to keep us in if there was any sign of a dark cloud!
As I prepared in a classroom, 12 young people came in, sat down and just stared at me; no matter how many times I do these workshops I always get a little nervous at this point as I know I have to get ?– and keep ?– their attention.
But this nervousness goes as soon as I start the workshop. After a quick ice-breaker with the group, we played a game based on the differences between wants and needs. After this we discussed the work of SCCYP and the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child; I was gob-smacked at how much they knew ?– until one of them pointed out that they had just finished a school project. Even then I was still impressed ?– it would be great if every school had this much knowledge! Then again ?– I might be out of a job?…
I really enjoyed my day at the school and thought the young people were fantastic!
But of course other days are not so exciting and I can find myself staring at a computer screen all day. Its a bit frustrating because I love working directly with children and young people but I know that a part of any job is preparation and writing up how an event has gone so I can keep improving. When I left the school I still had a few hours of work left to do so I started working on the leaving care report. This is a project that me and our researcher have been working on for a number of months - the first part of the research involved speaking to young people from across Scotland about the age of leaving care. The second part is writing a report on our findings and also producing a leaflet for young people that highlights what there entitlements and rights are when leaving care. I fired up the lap top and began typing my ideas down for the report and leaflet. Time flew by and before I knew it work was over and the weekend had begun.