How would you like to be brilliant?

We are now developing our sister site, www.beyourownkindofbrilliant.co.uk, where you can find lots of useful (and free!) resources and find out more about what helps us to be brilliant.

Forging Futures is the home of an engaged, compassionate learning community where each individual is valued for their individual passions, interests and desire to share, regardless of age or experiences. We aim to join people with as wide variety as experiences as possible and bring their collected expertise together in a number of exciting ways, for the benefit of young people and the community that they live in.

We acknowledge that this website is a work in progress and it will grow (and hopefully be easier on the eye) and develop alongside our projects. We're working hard to connect the dots and distill the information that you might need but if you have any questions and suggestions, please shout up because we want to hear from you. We currently have an expanding network of fantastic collaborators and lots of baby projects brewing, so the aim for now is to be brave and show you what we've got going on so far, so we can get you involved in how it all develops.

We are not aiming to be polished and perfect - we're not sure we believe in such things. We believe that the process is as important as the end result. We believe in sharing our ideas and sharing our mistakes so that we can all learn from them. We believe that if we work together, we can make amazing things happen in our community and beyond. And that has to start somewhere.

We'd love for you to join us and bring YOUR own kind of brilliant with you.

What are the issues and needs that young people are facing?

• There has been a stark rise in a wide range of mental health issues among young people and evidence suggests that mental health issues are becoming apparent at increasingly younger ages.
• Due to increasing need, severity and budget restrictions, access to effective mental health services is becoming more limited and less accessible to young people.
• Concerns are building about the effects of technology, the internet and social media on important issues like self-esteem, education, social skills, sleep and personal safety.
• Young people are increasingly vulnerable to various sources of exploitation and danger so need strong personal and digital skills to manage themselves safely in all environments.
• Every young person accesses the same curriculum in education, regardless of its suitability to their interests and aspirations. The 'arts' subjects are diminishing rapidly, the curriculum does not adequately prepare young people for their actual future needs and school budgets, morale and staff are increasingly stretched to their limits.
• Communication skills are vital, no matter what a young persons chosen path, but they are sadly lacking the opportunity to develop them within authentic and meaningful contexts.
• Young people's spheres of experience and contact with inspirational others needs to be widened. How can we ask them to make informed decisions about matters that are vital to their future, if we do not give them the opportunity to see a wider range of options and ask a lot of questions?
• For a variety of reasons, young people have a very limited and often negative view of how great they are and just how magnificent they could be. given the right opportunities and experiences.

How can we help the young people you care about?

Our courses, groups and initiatives provide young people with:

• A personal portfolio for their future, using up-to-date technology and apps.
• A wide variety of tools, techniques and research skills for learning and for life.

Plus:

• A supportive community where they can share and explore ideas with a wide range of expert, experienced and interested people.
• A mindset that fosters growth and learning.
• The confidence to be themselves and to invest their efforts in the areas that interest and excite them.
• The language and self-esteem to collaborate and communicate effectively with others, on a local and global level.
• Authentic learning experiences based on the real world and genuine experiences.
• The opportunity to contribute to their community regarding the things that are important to them and their lives.
• The skills to be able to find their place in the world, assert themselves and effectively adapt to the future.
• The tools to help themselves in this complex, fast-changing and technologically advancing society.
• The ability to apply their developing understanding to education and work.
• Sharpened focus and increased concentration.
• The ability to make sound decisions based on solid evidence.
• Ways of working positively with their own thoughts and emotions, and those of others.
• The safety to make mistakes and learn from them.
• The encouragement to make clear judgments and review their personal progress.
• Improved aspirations and ways of achieving them.

What underlying 'magic'do we use?

Ok, we admit it's not 'magic' as such. In fact, most of it is common sense. We all know that there is no magic wand that we can wave to help our young people to be everything that we know they could be, but we also know that there are lots of ways that we can work together to help them in the many ways that they need helping.

We believe the first steps are about establishing, maintaining and developing communication - in all of its many forms. We like to ask lots of questions of everyone that we work with, partly because we're nosy but mostly so that we can learn from your successes to ensure that we're always doing the best that we can with the resources that are available to use; working together effectively as a wider community, and continuing to learn and evaluate.

We always try to provide young people with insights into the wide range of positive tools, options and avenues that they can take to use help themselves and connect purposely with others.

At the moment these include:

Online learning tools, platforms, videos and apps

We aim to use a range of technology to learn in a contemporary and ever-evolving digital and physical environment. This way, students have continued and flexible access to materials, help, and a supportive peer-group, while they develop the skills they need to access whatever step they would like to take next - whether that is further education , the world of work and apprenticeships or something altogether different.

Coaching

Personalised help to enable young people to reach their goals. Not only will they be closer to achieving their aspirations, but they will also be improving their confidence and self-esteem, increasing trust and co-operation skills and developing positive relationships.

Mindfulness

There is a wealth of scientific evidence to show that mindfulness techniques have huge benefits for everyone, including young people, providing them with an adaptive self-regulation tool and mental space and wellbeing. We can help young people, and the people that work with them, to develop a practice that will guide them for life.

We can also offer a 10 week Mindfulness in Schools programme to schools, youth clubs, scout groups or any organisation that works with young people. Information about the course can be found here. Please contact us if you would like more information on bringing this life-changing course to your young people.

See this comprehensive report for the science on the incredible benefits this course can have for young people: https://mindfulnessinschools.org/wp-content/uploads/2013/02/MiSP-Research-Summary-2012.pdf

Volunteering and real-life careers experience

It’s clear to us all that young people’s aspirations are often limited by their understanding of the world of work, and their contact with people within it. We aim to join young people with a number of adults working within a diverse range of roles and give them the information and experience needed to reach the goals they set for themselves.

A compassion-focused, scientific approach

We know the tone of voice that young people often use when talking to one another. Now imagine for a moment, the voice they use to themselves in their internal dialogue. You know the one, you have your own little gremlin. We also understand that their responses are well-adapted to threatening situations but are not helpful within the context that we work with them. We aim to help young people to understand their brains and behaviours, and how to deal with themselves compassionately so that they can make the changes they want to.

A total focus on helping young people

We want young people to be fulfilled, capable, happy and adaptable to the environments they find themselves in. We want to help them develop a positive digital footprint that will support them in their choices. We want them to be proud of themselves and feel like they are always growing and improving. We want them to be able to communicate and connect with the people who can help them and know what they are talking about. Most of all, we want their power in the world to be beneficial, ground-breaking and far reaching.

Collaboration with the wider community

We understand that there is already so much going on in our wider community, and so many wonderful people offering a wide variety of skills and to share their passions. We're trying to get to know as many of those people as possible to see how we can work together to combine and create even more. If you haven't heard from us yet, we probably need some help to find you, so please let us know more about you.

We also know for certain that there are many young people who already have so much to offer and we're committed to getting as many of them involved in the work we do as possible. We also help those with a particular interest or talent to find valuable work experience by giving them a platform on which to share their passion and connecting them with opportunities through our network. If you think you, or someone you know, could have something they would like to share, or who would benefit from connections like these, just point them in our direction.

What else will young people be able to take away with them?

All participating young people will be given the opportunity to create a 'Be Your Own kind of Brilliant’ portfolio with us, where they can use their developing skills to build a unique , digital 'space'that encapsulates them and their expanding abilities and experiences. It will be somewhere they can collect their interests, store their discoveries and develop their growing sense of self-awareness. It can also include the practical things that we know they need for the future, including CVs, covering/speculative letters, interview skills, effective language and communication skills and positive body language.

Together, we’ll track their personal learning journey and leave young people feeling like they each have something to offer and are able to use it to discover what they want so they can forge the future that they deserve.

What do we need from our community?

To help us to find the questions that we might need the answers to.

To point out the obstacles that we might need to overcome and to give us a hand over them.

To give us help and advice on securing funding for all of the fabulous ideas we have and projects that we have on the go.

Yourself, your interests, your skills, your connections, your young people and your genuine intentions.

Your ideas on how and where we might create new spaces in our community to make this magic happen.

Or generally, whatever it is that makes YOU brilliant.

Our current services

We believe in offering a dynamic range of courses, sessions, workshops and activities and love to combine our 'magic' with yours in interesting and engaging ways. We consider every role we take as a learning opportunity and can offer a bespoke service to your family, schools or organisation, using the quantities and combinations of our specialisms that work for you.

Whether you are a young person, parent, teacher, general busy-body or one of the multitude of others who believe our young people need and deserve more, we have something to offer and things we would like to learn from you.

Please also join our Facebook group, 'Forging Futures', for up-to-date conversations on some of the projects we're currently working on. Get in touch via the group or by using our contact page if you want to ask any questions, contribute, share or join in.

We have some sessions for young people starting on 9th May at Fleet Arts in Belper (see our Current Projects page) and we're hoping to soon be able to offer further courses in weekly or weekend blocks, including another free one on 'Preparing for University'. To create what is right for you, it's vital that share with us just what is important to you in your community. These will hopefully be based in Belper or Duffield but again, get in touch and tell us which would suit you and what you would like to be available there.

Below are some of the categories that we would like to build additional courses on:

• Health and personal growth
• Digital literacy and positive digital footprints
• Mindfulness
• Tutoring
• Careers
• Volunteering
• Coaching

We're always open to ideas though so if you have a need for something not mentioned above, contact us and let us know what we can do for you.

Some of our further course ideas for future implementation:

We know our stuff but no-one knows your young people like you do, so we would love to hear your ideas on what we can do to help your young people to be their own kind of brilliant.

Inspiring Interests - Matching young people with subject specialists from schools and organisations, as well as their peers, to encourage passion, participation and perseverance.

Emerging Interests - Exploring the interests that young people already have and helping them build up a body of knowledge, a community of helpful support and tailored advice on furthering their skills from other similar-minded enthusiasts.

Engaging Interests - Helping young people to find positive social networks, access a wide range of instructive material, and investigate the breadth and power of MOOCS, designed around their developing interests and desire to deepen their technical understanding of them. Whether it's subject based or interest based, young people will experience the energy and enthusiasm of 'teachers’ in a way they rarely see in the classroom, and be able to access their talks and information at a time that suits them.

Peephole Professions - Helping young people to think more broadly about the range of jobs that are out there. By engaging with professional experts via webinars, young people can receive relevant, contemporary and tailored advice regarding what different jobs are REALLY all about, enabling them to ‘think out of the box’ in terms of their potential pathway to their own success.

Evolving Volunteering - Exploring volunteering opportunities and developing wow-ing applications. Helping young people into the workplace where they can practice and share developing skills, get valuable CV fodder and refine their own career goals further.

Community Coaching - Working one-to-one with other like-minded young people to support and guide one another. Helping out on the community and with local environment groups.