Developing Essential Skills - for EVERYONE at Sheffield Children's University

At Sheffield Children's University, we've been thinking (and talking) a lot about life skills recently, and how important they are. We need these skills to adapt to all kinds of situations in life - not just at school, college, university or work but in life more generally. You might have already seen that we are now tracking how children and young people develop a series of 8 essential life skills through their participation in CU activities. We've been working with an organisation called SkillsBuilder who (with partners) have identified 8 key skills:

Over time, you (and your child) will be able to see how their skills are developing - which ones they are becoming masters at, as well as the ones that might need a little more work - through the reports attached to their awards. We'll also be able to see at a glance, which skills are being developed the most and the least across Sheffield as a whole. This information will help us and our partners to develop activities and events to help meet any gaps, ensuring Sheffield's children, young people and families are developing the skills they need to be the best they can be.

Developing skills in our team

Here at Sheffield CU, we've always believed that helping people to develop their skills is REALLY important. That's why we've always had Apprentices in our team. An apprenticeship is a job which includes lots of training and is a great way to develop all your essential life skills as well as experience of work all at the same time. Quite simply, we COULD NOT run Sheffield Children's University without our Apprentices and so we thought it was time you heard how our Apprentices have developed their skills as part of our team...and how this continues to the present day. 

So, first, here's Sakina to tell you a little more...

'I started with the Sheffield CU Team back in August 2012. I saw the advert online for the role which was an Apprentice learning all about Business Support. When I first joined the team, I was very overwhelmed. I couldn't believe that such a small team could do so much but I was also amazed that an initiative like this was available to everyone in Sheffield.'

'When I first started, my role was very much around traditional 'Business Support' tasks. That's the things that are done 'behind the scenes' to ensure everything works. Since 2012 though, my role has changed dramatically. In the early days, my role was very much data inputting (that's adding all the registers and the CU credits) and certificate production. Now, 9 years later, I mentor the Apprentices in our team. I'm in a good position to be able to do this as I know how they're feeling. I've been there and can help them overcome challenges as well as develop their new skills.' 

And that she does! Sakina is an AMAZING mentor both to Apprentices in our team and to other Business Support Apprentices working in other teams.

'Now I have more experience and skills myself, I am part of the bigger conversation around the projects that CU runs. I also lead on the planning, preparation, and organisation of all the Gold award ceremonies. When I look back, I can see how important my work was in those early days, making sure all the children received their awards. But now I coordinate it all, from the ceremony venues, to making sure we have all the caps and gowns we need as well as making sure we have all the children's awards ready in time.' And that's no small task Sakina!

Sakina adds 'I think over the 9 years I’ve been with CU, I have developed all 8 of the life skills we continually talk about, to different degrees. For example, my Problem Solving skills have developed loads over the last 18 months – the biggest problem I think we have solved is being able to continue to offer CU during a global pandemic. Facing other problems before this now seems minor. Trying to work out the logistics of ceremonies and certificates but then trying to do them from home in a completely different setting was challenging, but a key thing with problem solving is about working together with others which we do really well in the CU Team. We identified what we wanted to achieve (children receiving awards) then worked backwards and put in all the steps we needed to, to solve the new challenges brought by lockdown.' 

But we're always talking about learning being a lifelong journey here in the Sheffield CU Team and Sakina agrees; 'I'm still developing skills - we all are - which is why working in the Sheffield CU Team is so good. It's so varied and there's always a new opportunity to get involved with - somewhere I can gain more experience and develop more skills.’

‘Take Leadership for example – this is one of the skills that I’m still really developing but have come so far with during my time at CU. When I started as an Apprentice I didn’t make any important decisions really, and I very much followed the path that had already been laid by my team. Now I take more of a lead in decision making, like managing the CU Festival of Fun for the first time this year. I was responsible for planning and arranging all the activities and making sure they would be delivered in some really good venues that were easy for people to get to. I had to liaise with all the Learning Destinations and make sure the programme was pulled together accurately and on time. But at the same time, I also needed to make sure everything was within our small budget. I was making decisions about thousands of pounds of money which was scary at first but I knew the team had confidence and faith in me to use my Leadership skills effectively. I've really enjoyed it and learned so much too.' Sakina’s done a fantastic job with the CU Festival of Fun this year - we're sure you'll agree!

But Sakina already knows which skills she'd like to focus on next...

'Speaking – that's one that I’m still working on but it’s something I do more of now, speaking in front of an audience. This is something I continue to struggle with, however it’s a huge part of my role within CU now, from speaking in smaller groups at our school network meetings to speaking to the whole audience at award ceremonies. I thoroughly enjoy being able to share and promote the great work our partners and children and young people have been doing but speaking about them to an audience still makes me nervous.'

'Developing skills is part of my everyday work and it's so important. That, as well as learning to work with others - Teamwork – that's the one skill that makes every bit of difference. Teamwork is something I really feel I’ve developed the most but have no doubt it’s the one that will continue to develop the most too. Being part of a team can sometimes be a little daunting if I’m honest, especially when you’re new or someone new joins your team but over time it’s the thing that I have learned to value the most. I now understand and appreciate that I have had these opportunities and the amazing experiences because my team have encouraged and supported me through everything.'

And Sakina has this message for all our CU members and their families...

'Working within CU has been an eye-opening experience. Following all your journeys to see how much resilience and determination you’ve all got is inspiring and is something that I learn from every day. It’s with thanks to the children, young people and their families that make my job as enjoyable as it is. For that I owe huge thanks to them, for making each day different. It’s crazy to think what I was like 9 years ago to what I am now. I just hope the next however many years are as fun, enjoyable and educational as these past nine years have been😊.'