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Posted: July 2, 2024

Kibble’s Skills Academy further enhanced St Mirren’s first-team changing room, raising the already high standards of the club. After previously redecorating the space with the club’s iconic black and white stripes, young people were motivated to continue the development project and manufacture wooden locker areas for each player.

Young people attend Kibble’s Skills Academy to achieve qualifications and complete work experience that will ultimately help them enter the world of work. Many choose to learn skills in construction, painting and decorating and visualise themselves building a career related to the valuable trades. By attending The Skills Academy, the young apprentices have plenty of opportunities to gain practical experience in a real-life business setting. The chance to see their skills transform the space of a professional football club is extremely motivating to the young learners.

The young apprentices applied their skills to design a first-team a changing room that exceeded all expectations. As St Mirren qualified for European competition for the first time since 1987 it was agreed the players’ environment must match their professionalism. For the upgrade, each player would have their own dedicated compartment area to help prepare them for the upcoming games.

St Mirren football players spend a lot of time in the changing room pre-and-post match and research suggests a stylish, highly functional and aesthetically-pleasing changing room can help bond teams. Described as the ‘starting place’ for the game ahead, players get to the changing room early and now, being together while having their own space. There was a lot of responsibility bestowed to Kibble’s Skills Academy to design a high quality, professional changing room.

Together, students and their Skills Academy instructors took the required measurements and built wooden benches and shelves from scratch before using their joinery skills to make individual solid units that slot together to create a unified look and feel. Young people put their painting skillset to the test and decorated the units to fit in with the club’s theme of black and white stripes.

All agree the young apprentices continue to meet exceptionally high standards.

Kibble CEO, Jim Gillespie explains the project is an example of exactly why the partnership between Kibble and the club was formed: “When Kibble and St Mirren partnered, the reason was to develop our young workforce development opportunities and now, to see the results of the partnership is phenomenal.

Young people have demonstrated drive and ambition in transforming the St Mirren changing room. The students have seen the project through from beginning to end and applied their own talent and skillset add value to the Scottish Premiership team surroundings.”

St Mirren Chief Operating Officer, Keith Lasley was impressed by the skill level demonstrated by young people: “The St Mirren changing room has been completely transformed by The Skills Academy young people and their instructors. As soon as you walk in to the changing area, you know it’s belongs to St Mirren” We are extremely grateful to all young people involved.”

Posted: June 12, 2024

Senior learners from Goudie Academy dressed in their finest to celebrate their school prom and all of their achievements.

This year’s theme was Glitz and Glam, as decided by learners, and the afternoon’s celebrations certainly lived up to the glamorous title! Graduates were formally greeted at the entrance to the Gannochy Theatre – the glittering backdrop of the day’s events. Fifth year learners were integral in the organising of the day’s events, including the planning, design and dressing of the room, under the watchful eye of their teachers.

It was a day of huge celebration and pride as senior learners graduated from Goudie Academy, with a special ceremony to congratulate them on their many achievements. Awards were handed out by key tutors to all graduates, who proudly and emotionally spoke of their key pupil’s academic journey, their achievements, all that they are and all that they will go on to achieve. The sky is the limit! Everyone also watched a video showcase celebrating their many educational milestones.

There was lots of toe-tapping, singing and dancing as the Kibble band ‘The Komonauts’ took to the stage to perform a medley of popular songs in front of an excited audience. The accumulation of years of band rehearsals, performances and coaching.

Delicious food and mocktails were served by HE Teacher, Carol, and perhaps the icing on the cake was the doughnut wall and sweetie stall. With dressing up the theme of the day, there was much hilarity at the photo booth, with young people and teachers getting celebratory snaps in silly hats, glasses and other crazy props.

There was a real energy in the room as pupils invited important people in their lives, and were joined by teaching staff from Forest View, Mirin Academy and Skills Academy to enjoy the celebrations.

Leona Donnelly, Deputy Head of Education, commented:

I would just like to thank everyone again for the tremendous effort you all put in for the Class of 2024 event. It was a HUGE success and certainly a day that our young people will remember forever. It is events like today’s that help us to remember why we work here and the positive difference we can make to our young people’s lives.

The key tutor speeches were excellent and brought a few tears to my eyes. I saw several other people reaching for hankies also. The hall looked great, the food was delicious, hoodies fab and the video was lovely.”

We’d like to take this opportunity to express our sincere congratulations to the class of 2024 and we know that they will go on to achieve so many great and wonderful things in the future. It’s been a pleasure and honour to welcome you to classes each day and share in all of your incredible achievements.

Posted: June 6, 2024

Kibble were amongst an entire network of individuals, organisations and local authorities who all influence the lives of children and young people on a daily basis.

Children and Young People’s Commissioner, Nicola Killean opened the conference with Young Person Chair, Mhairi and together they began the two-day event filled with powerful keynote speeches and insightful workshops. The following day, the delegates were welcomed by Chief Executive of Voluntary Action South Lanarkshire and Board Convenor of Children in Scotland, Steven Sweeney alongside Young Person Chair, Olive.

The highlight of the event, in our opinion, were the workshops held by our very own Kibble colleagues.

Therapeutic Practitioner, Rachel; Principal Teacher, Lucy and Service Manager, Caitlin led a session titled, “When young people are risky, complex or ‘stuck’. A case study of integrative working from Kibble.” Each of them gave an honest account of working alongside one another while striving to work also with young people; rather than young people feeling therapy and care is something done ‘to’ them, it must be carried out ‘with’ them. Rachel, Lucy and Caitlin were upfront about their experience of trying to change environments to care for young people with complex trauma and reinforced the essential requirements of time and patience. The session ended on an extremely positive note with Rachel’s sharing an uplifting monumental moment: when a young person felt ready to go cold water swimming.

Additionally, SAFE and IVY delivered a workshop about the difference being made through the two community-based services. Senior Family Service Practitioner and Family Psychotherapist, Amanda and Social Worker, Mhairi spoke of the progress made to date.

Overall, everyone in attendance thoroughly enjoyed the event, each learning something new and now, we look forward to Kibble’s own Annual Conference in November.

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John Paul joined Kibble almost four years ago and has since received a Postgraduate Certificate in Autism from Sheffield Hallam University and is set to graduate in November.

Advice from John Paul to anyone considering Further Study is to understand the commitment involved. He advised the course he chose was intense with two modules having to be completed within 7 months of the start date. It was his genuine ambition to gain a formal qualification in autism and learn valuable new skills that motivated him to pursue the academic challenge.

John Paul shared, “I applied for this course as I have always had an interest in autism. I previously worked in an autism specialist school and whilst I have had training, I had no formal qualification until now.”

As the Acting Principal Teacher of Additional Support for Learning, the Further Study experience

Kibble is focused on offering you and your colleagues the chance to gain qualifications suitable to your job role. The Further Study experience gave John Paul the opportunity to develop tangible skills and a newfound understanding in autism, which was helpful in his role as Acting Principal Teacher of Additional Support for Learning.

“I think the main benefit of achieving the qualification is that it keeps me up-to-date with current teachings on autism as knowledge in this field is continually growing and developing.”

I would definitely encourage others to apply for the further study programme. We are very lucky Kibble offer this!”

The accomplishment was due to John Paul having a genuine ambition to learn new tangible skills he could bring to his role and to young people he supports day-to-day.

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In her role as Project Coordinator, Paige motivates pupils to learn about important topics through interactive activities. Paige leads on the Delivering Equally Safe, a project funded by Scottish Government and managed by Inspiring Scotland with the overall aim to prevent and eradicate of violence against women and girls.

Paige has had the responsibility of teaching young people about safe relationships and as a result of incorporating engaging teaching methods including script-writing and drama, artwork and short stories and interactive boards, young people have shown interest and gained a greater understanding of the values of Delivering Equally Safe.

To further her own knowledge on inspiring pupils, Paige decided to attend Step In. Paige joined others from across Europe who have a similar job role to her. All exchanged their ways of working and shared resources. The sessions helped attendees strengthen leadership skills and learn how best to manage conflict and group dynamics amongst young people. There was time to reflect on what kind of leader you believed yourself to be – a delegator or coach. By gaining insight into your own practice, opportunities to try new ideas can be identified.

Paige shared, “This training course provided me with the chance to explore different methods on facilitating group work. I had the opportunity to describe Delivering Equally Safe and how it is being taught in our school within Scotland, comparing different practices across the world.”

“Throughout the week, we explored conflict management, personal leadership skills, and engagement tools when discussing complex societal issues. I was able to reflect on my experiences at Kibble and share relevant examples to groups about how I have developed as a project coordinator. The trainers and attendees listened to my presentations about what tools I feel are most effective for working with young people; such as creative writing, drama and critical thinking discussions.”

“My knowledge has been enhanced and I have learned about my personal strengths and weaknesses as a facilitator and things to consider when conflict arises amongst young people; such as decision-making and processes of working and learning together. This has boosted my confidence as a project coordinator and allowed me to understand areas for development and future planning for group work at Kibble. Additionally, I have made international connections with professionals who I can continue to link in with to share resources and objectives for educational projects.”

Paige’s enthusiasm when describing the trip demonstrates the valuable knowledge gained. Paige also commented on how Kibble stood out with their trauma-informed ways of working and her pride in presenting our approach to her fellow attendees.

One of Kibble’s greatest staff benefits is their willingness to invest in your continued learning and training. For Paige, she spoke with her line managers before approaching Kibble’s Learning and Development team and sending her submission into the programme for consideration. Her alongside application joined 2,400 others and she was overjoyed to hear she had been successful.

Kibble’s own Learning and Development team are always willing to hear about all employees career aspirations and goals.

Posted: May 28, 2024

Child and Youth Care Worker Grant still remembers his experience of joining Kibble and how influential his mentors were to him, which motivated Grant to qualify as a Child and Youth Care Worker and help any new recruits who followed after him.

Grant reflected on when he first joined Career Start: “As a young Trainee, I knew one day I wanted to be as welcoming and helpful to others as my mentors, Kirsten and Aleisha had been to me.”

“Kirsten was my first mentor who was amazing. She showed me exactly what the role of a Child and Youth Care Worker involved and included me in all her day-to-day tasks, giving me great insight but Kirsten decided to go part-time to attend University. I then selected Aleisha to be my mentor as she was such a big part of our team and always first to help others.”

Grateful for his own Career Start experience and keen to help shape the journey of upcoming Child and Youth Care Workers he successfully achieved his goal of becoming a mentor himself: “I became a mentor as I enjoy helping people and having been a Trainee myself, I know how daunting it can all be but also how rewarding it is when you come out the other side. I love nothing more than helping people and seeing others reach goals and succeed.”

Grant gives an insight into the role of a mentor: “Working with young people can be quite busy with a lot going on. Career Start is a mixture of working in the house and completing the HNC qualification, it’s the support network in place that helps you to achieve. You have a lot of support from experienced staff and the Learning and Development team to help you.”

“My two previous Trainee who I mentored said they were grateful for me and that I was really supportive. My goal is to help new staff to settle in and share my experience with them to make them feel as comfortable as possible. I support Trainees through all the ups and downs they experience along the way of reaching their moment of realisation that this is the job for them. All of a sudden, Trainees recognise the difference they are making and how fulfilled they feel coming to work each day, it’s extremely motivational for me to see this first-hand.”

Becoming a mentor is rewarding and Grant shares what he himself has learned from Trainees: “Personally, since becoming a mentor, my time management is much better as I have to balance carrying out my role as well as spending time with others, setting goals with them and monitoring their progress.”

“I feel I have further developed my own skills too and I now have more responsibilities to help others. Although I am a mentor to Trainees, I am also approachable to all new staff team members as we’re all here for the same reason – to make a difference to the lives of young people. There is great team work at Kibble.”

Meet Grant’s Mentor, Aleisha

An inspiration to Grant, Aleisha shares her point-of-view of being a mentor. Also, a previous Trainee, Aleisha has progressed to qualify as a Child and Youth Care Worker, mentor others and achieve the promotion of Senior Practitioner. She leads by example of what you can achieve through Career Start.

“I was recommended to the mentoring programme by a colleague. I took the time to consider taking on the extra challenge and ultimately, decided I would enjoy passing on my experience and helping others. The responsibility of being a mentor developed my own skills too and as a result, I have since achieved career progression from Trainee to Child and Youth Care Worker to a Senior Practitioner.”

“The role of a mentor is incredibly important as working at Kibble and spending time in the houses is fast-paced. As a mentor, I am prepared to offer one-to-one support to Trainees and be someone they can rely upon. It does involve going over and above to make sure the Trainee is comfortable with their responsibilities.”

“I was also a Trainee myself so I have been through the learning process of completing the training programme. I am someone Trainees can relate to, I’ve been in their shoes.”

“My own mentor was Care and Education Coordinator Craig who was energetic and enthusiastic and taught me the priority is building genuine relationships with the kids and getting to know them. Also, that humour goes a long way.”

“The entire staff team is friendly and willing to help Trainees; however, it is valuable to have one set person who dedicates the time for one-to-one support. With a mentor, there’s always time to ask questions and take away any anxieties about starting the new role.”

Apply now to Career Start in Child and Youth Care. You’l receive full support and mentoring from Kibble’s own Learning and Development team and a mentor similar to Grant as you accomplish beginning a brand-new rewarding career with Kibble.

Learn more about Career Start

Posted: May 27, 2024

As a dad of two small children, Ryan wanted a new job that fitted around his family lifestyle, which also had the potential to be a long-term career. Although Ryan enjoyed landscaping, it was labour-intensive and involved working outdoors in harsh winters. At the age of 37, after eight years as a landscaper, Ryan knew now was his time for a career change.

Changing careers at 37 can be an overwhelming thought, however, Ryan heard about Kibble’s Career Start in Child and Youth Care and immediately thought: ‘That’s what I am looking for!’

About Career Start

Career Start prioritises life experience and enthusiasm in its job applications; rather than formal qualifications. Ryan was a parent and volunteered as a football coach – he was confident he had transferable skills to relate to young people and be a positive influence. Ryan decided he was suitable to apply to Career Start and was overjoyed to hear his application was successful.

Now a Trainee Child and Youth Care Worker, Ryan gives us an insight into the most enjoyable part of the experience so far: “I enjoy getting to know young people, finding out their likes and dislikes and creating friendships with them.”

“The training has been helpful too, teaching us about individual thinking and the reasoning behind certain behaviours.”

“Since joining Career Start, I believe I am a better person and better parent.”

What Does Each Working Day Involve?

The working week of a Trainee initially involves six-months of training with Kibble’s own Learning and Development team. Whereas the latter half of the year includes practical experience alongside studying: trainees spend three-days in a children’s residential house with a mentor, one day in the classroom and another independent study day at home. Ryan describes his working week:

“I spend Monday in the classroom working towards an HNC qualification, another day studying at home and also complete three shifts per week.”

“My day can depend on the shift. I prefer backshift and spending time with kids after-school. I encourage young people to find a fun activity to try – some pick to go shopping, go-karting or playing goals outside.”

“The work placement means the training isn’t hypothetical and instead, we’re living what the academic side is trying to tell us. I find it valuable being able to watch, observe and get involved with how experienced Child and Youth Care Workers bond with young people and create such fun, positive memories for those in our care.”

“My mentor, Tracey is a massive inspiration to me and I relate to her as she understands the commitment of studying for a qualification.”

About the Academic Side of Career Start

Through Career Start, Trainees achieve an HNC qualification with full support from Kibble’s own instructors. Although many may be nervous about studying, Ryan reassures potential applicants: “Immediately I was nervous about the thought of studying, however, each trainee receives one-to-one support and there is always a mentor on-hand to text, email and talk to. All the trainees have a Whatsapp group to support one another too.”

“When I first applied I was interested in the practical skills involved as knew this would be my strength, however, the academic part has given me great understanding of the role.”

Who Is Suitable to Apply to Kibble’s Career Start Training Programme?

You may be wondering if you can join Ryan as a Trainee Child and Youth Care Worker and if you have the drive and enthusiasm to start a new career. In Ryan’s opinion the following traits are the best characteristics potential applicants can possess:

“1. You must value consistency and be aware of the commitment involved.”

“2. Be yourself every day as young people are drawn to reliable and trusting adults who are genuine. You can’t teach personality and friendliness so if you’re naturally fun and enjoy spending time with young people, you’ll excel.”

“3. Also, you have to be resilient. Remember, it’s a learning process. There are absolutely brilliant days but each shift, actually, each hour, is different and you’ll keep experiencing new things, which keeps it interesting. My advice would be to start each shift as a brand-new day.”

Ryan began Career Start in Child and Youth Care Worker in July 2023 and is expecting to qualify this summer.

Learn more about Career Start

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Pupils were set the task of creating 10 short films showcasing the different roles and departments of Police Scotland. The insightful series has become a learning resource for young children to understand the number of specialisms that exist within the police.

The young persons’ direction and point-of-view means the films are likely to capture interest from the intended younger audience. Police Scotland recognise the value young directors bring and proactively try to co-produce with children and young people when creating educational materials for youngsters. It was agreed the 1-minute clips would be a digital series with 10 cards displayed on the interactive board in the classroom for children to click and select which police officer they’d like to watch first.

The young directors from Kibble met with Police Scotland’s Air Support Unit, Wildlife Crime division and more. The pupils’ found each officers’ stories interesting, which motivated them to direct fun videos that would be fascinating to watch. As well as learning about the Police themselves, young people discovered the importance of camera work, good lighting and crisp clear sound and used a boom mic, camera stand and other professional equipment.

Posted: May 7, 2024

Career Start in Child and Youth Care is Kibble’s own training programme that recruits people with life experience to qualify as a Child and Youth Care Worker.

Through Career Start, you have the opportunity to earn while qualifying as a Child and Youth Care Worker. Successful recruits receive full mentoring and support to achieve an HNC qualification and complete a work placement within one of our fun children’s residential houses.

Kibble supports children and young people aged 5-26-years-old therefore is in a unique position to provide valuable and varied on-the-job training to those in-search of a fulfilling career.

“I knew I wanted to work with children and Career Start gave me the opportunity to change careers from retail and retrain.”
Julie Ann

We welcome graduates, young adults, those with life experience and people who want to change careers and begin a role with longevity. Our in-house Learning and Development team continue to help individuals expand their skills, knowledge and experience even once qualified.

“I progressed from being a Trainee to qualifying as a Child and Youth Care Worker before achieving a promotion to Senior Practitioner.”
Aleisha

Next Steps

Discover what is involved in the Career Start Training Programme and apply before Monday 3^rd June 2024.

Learn more about Career Start

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Kibble’s Skills Academy held their annual Industry Day and welcomed over 56 pupils including young people from other local schools. The fun careers fair was an opportunity for school leavers to start conversations with potential employers, which motivated them to think about their future plans.

The careers fair showcased over 15 employers who shared information about the various job roles available as well as the qualifications and life experience they look for in application forms. An exclusive insight was given to young people who are facing the important milestone of leaving school and beginning to think about entering the world of work. This process can understandably be overwhelming, however, the busy yet relaxed atmosphere of Industry Day helped young people get excited about the possibilities available to them.

Young people were introduced to The Scottish Fire and Rescue Service (SFRS), Police Scotland, Scottish Leather Group, National Manufacturing Institute Scotland (NMIS), CREATE Paisley, Howden and more. Each stand was surrounded by young learners keen to know more about what career opportunities were suitable to them and their own interests and talents.

The fire and rescue service had young people trying on the uniform who marvelled at how heavy the outfit was. Others were fascinated by NMIS’s robots. Whereas one young person who currently attends The Skills Academy to gain qualifications in Painting and Decorating and helped redecorate St Mirren Football Club spent the time talking to Howden.

Young people of Kibble are extremely talented from playing music to acting and more. They thoroughly enjoy creative arts projects therefore CREATE Paisley was a popular stand with friendly Youth Development Managers Sam and Nicola encouraging young people to attend their weekly creative workshops.