A Wild Celebration!
Earlier in July, over 100 students and their teachers from across the country joined their athlete mentors, along with AQA volunteers and trustees from both organisations at London Zoo to celebrate completing the AQA Unlocking Potential programme. For some of the young people it was their first visit to London, and a trip to the iconic landmark venue was a culmination of their hard work over the year. The event offered the opportunity for all of the 30 schools involved in the programme this year to meet up and share their experiences.
The day began with a scavenger hunt around the zoo, where the groups of young people were sent off in teams to find and solve a series of clues to reveal the combination to a treasure chest. They had 90 minutes to complete their task, with prizes being awarded for fastest team, best teamwork and best animal impression!
Athlete mentor, Jenny Wallwork, shared:
“They were loving it! As soon as they knew they were doing a scavenger hunt... it’s something fun, and exciting, and getting to explore... some of them have never been to London before, so what an opportunity!”
The fastest team back and to open the safe correctly was St Christopher’s School from Wrexham, the best team work award went to students from the Richard Rose Central Academy in Carlisle and the best animal impression was won by students from the Royal Albert and Alexandra School in Reigate. Each of the winning teams received gold medals, a certificate, and some sweets from the treasure chest.
Finally, it was on to the awards ceremony, where students and schools were presented with their certificates by AQA Trustee Mark Allen and Dame Kelly Holmes CEO Martin Talbot – students also received an Amazon voucher worth £30 for completing the programme.
Our athlete mentor team enjoyed spending the day with the young people from schools across the UK
Dame Kelly Holmes Trust trustee, Phillip Bunt attended the day and said:
“I think it’s a really critical programme for young people. They are facing really difficult challenges and they are learning how to overcome them.”
On the programme run by Dame Kelly Holmes Trust, AQA Trustee Mark Allen added:
“I had the pleasure to meet the young people engaged in AQA Unlocking Potential at the end of programme celebration at London Zoo.
This is a really inspiring collaboration which gives less advantaged young people many of the life skills they may need to give them the best chance of success at school and beyond. Well done to everyone involved.”
Applications for the next AQA Unlocking Potential programme will open in September 2024.