The Sixth Form College has collaborated with local charity Arch to raise students’ self-esteem through a new programme called Girl Power.

The programme  has been designed to raise the self-esteem and healthy relationship education of young women and is based on Arch’s current work with high school-aged students.

Learning Support Assistant at the Sixth Form College, Camilla Jameson, initiated the collaboration, Camilla said:

“We were aware that the age of our students makes them statistically more likely to experience abusive relationships. To maximise the College’s support network we reached out to Arch whose work in the area is highly regarded.”

“Arch has worked to adapt their Girl Power programme to fit the age of our students. With a focus on improving self-esteem, awareness of unhealthy behaviours and other preventative education, the programme has been embraced by our students and the results have been amazing.”

“The young women who participated have drastically improved their self-confidence and resilience, which is great to see.”

Girl Power was attended by seven female students. The students were selected because the College believed they would benefit greatly from the programme’s content. The group experienced weekly two-hour sessions ran by members of the Arch team. Highly participatory, the sessions covered topics such as consent, life goals and healthy relationships.

Programme leader, Sarah Capewell, described the purpose of the sessions:

“We’re here to give young girls a better understanding of important topics regarding their physical and mental wellbeing.”

During its pilot at the Sixth Form College the programme has proven to be very successful and popular amongst students.

A student who participated said “I feel more comfortable in myself and how I look and feel more confident in myself”

Another student said “It helped me to have a better understanding of abuse in relationships and gave me the strength to end a relationship that had the potential to go this way as a result.”

The proved positive outcomes of Girl Power has led to Arch receiving funding to expand their delivery of the programme. Arch will run Girl Power a second time at the College and aims to continue delivering the programme across the city.

Working with Arch on Girl Power is the beginning of what the Sixth Form College hopes to be a long relationship that will greatly benefit its students over a long period. Girl Power will be delivered again at the Sixth Form College in the future and Arch will be regularly invited to run other projects with Sixth Form College students.