Envision – Semi-Finals
The Community-Apprentice Programme, run by Envision, is an extra-curricular activity that involves Sixth Form students from Birmingham, Bristol and London. Twenty-eight Year 12 students from HGS participated in the programme this year, which aims to develop projects within school and in the local community. For more information about Envision, please visit their website at www.envision.org.uk.
Following months of hard work, planning and implementation, both teams (Mentality and Concept) from HGS finally went head-to-head in the quarter finals round of the competition on April 11th, 2016. Each team played a 3-minute video documentary showcasing their achievements and the impact they made to the lives of the people they attempted to help. This was then followed by a live group presentation, during which they showcased the skills they developed and relied upon to help them overcome the many challenges they faced implementing their projects. Following intense deliberation, the judges namely Mr S Bird, Mr A Kafai and Mr F Ahmed decided that, whilst both teams had done a tremendous service to the local community, it was team Mentality that performed a better overall presentation, demonstrating the impact of their project.
Following their qualification to the semi-finals round of the competition, team Mentality was invited to compete against 10 other teams from schools across the city. The competition was hosted by the University of Birmingham at the beautifully crafted Aston Webb building. Each team (one from each school) was invited to play their video presentation followed by a 2 minutes live presentation to an audience of over 200 people and a panel of three judges from local businesses. All the presentations were of high quality. But more importantly, they, once again, proved that young people in Birmingham can be a force for good in society, despite the negative attitude towards young people in the media. Unfortunately, team Mentality did not qualify for the Final round of the competition.
On a more positive note, all competing teams have been invited to the Community Apprentice Awards 2016 at the Council House, Victoria Square on June 28th, 2016. The aim of the event is to recognise and celebrate the hard work of all young people in the city. A number of awards, including The Teamwork Award, The Leadership Award, and The Organisation Award, to name but a few, will be awarded to deserving teams. At the end of the ceremony, which will include speeches by local/national celebrities, and music by local bands, the Community Apprentice Winners of 2016 will be announced, and the evening drawn to a speedy conclusion.
We would like to take this opportunity to wish both of our teams the best of luck in winning an award this year for their hard work and dedication despite the challenges they faced.
Mr Ahmed
