News / Bristol Charity
Mentoring group wins big at National Entrepreneur Awards
The competition was strong in the South-West region of the Natwest Great British Entrepreneur Awards, but it was Wayne Cockram, founder and managing director of Bristol-based charitable scheme Impact Mentoring who emerged victorious.
Humbled by the recognition, Wayne says, “It was a shock for me, to have someone take what I’m doing seriously enough to get an award. We have a really good team of diverse, young and energetic people, with 50 mentors working for us now. It is a real testament to them as well as me.”
Just some of the young people Impact Mentoring has worked with
Impact Mentoring was set up when Wayne saw that young people struggling with education and the means to attain their goals often had little access to support.
With around 130 success stories to date, Wayne and his team work locally with young people who have fallen out of full-time education, and need extra guidance to help rekindle their aspirations. Last year they increased the number of young people they reached by over 50 per cent.
The mentors work with young people in school settings
Support can range from a six-week programme of tailored help, all the way up to three years of support for the most vulnerable adolescents.
Wayne recalls working with one young boy for a prolonged time period, helping him to battle a debilitating case of anxiety. “It made me realise how crippling anxiety can be to young people,” Wayne says. “Here was a boy who spent weeks at a time under his duvet, not eating. It was our job to give him the confidence to go outside again, to integrate him back into the community.”
Jamie, 17, was mentored by Wayne
The award might be recognition on a national scale, but it isn’t the only testimonial to Wayne and his team, as mentees and parents affirm how the scheme has helped shaped their futures. Jamie, 17, says, “Wayne helped me change my thought process towards education. I finished year 11 and did well in my GCSE’s and I am now at Filton college.”
Cara, a mum of two who were helped by the scheme, said: “Impact Mentoring does exactly as what it says: it impacts on the life of our whole family.”
Find more information at www.impactmentoring.co.uk
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