The STEAM Ahead Programme is a joint project between Tutors United and KORI, created based on a shared vision to ensure all children are given access to the support and tools they need to navigate the education system. Bringing together our respective expertise – TU as a curriculum design expert and KORI with their excellent team of experienced youth workers – we have created a holistic programme which maintains learning across the school holiday, offers students access to trained youth workers to support their wellbeing, and gives parents/carers access to free, safe, and enriching childcare outside of term-time.
KORI’s mission is to support young people to enjoy, thrive and contribute to the world as valued members of society. At KORI, they are dedicated to constructing robust foundations for youth by providing a distinctive and supportive environment. Through youth work and creative facilitation, we provide needed interventions, training, project engagement, bespoke mentoring, counselling, respite, and the opportunity to enrich networks. They serve young people from predominantly black, and minority ethnic communities from across London. Working to support those in vulnerable positions, including those: struggling with education, training, or employment; that are care leavers, young carers, young parents, refugees, new citizens; and those who are in social situations that put their futures at risk.
At the heart of what they do is providing young people with a unique, creative, warm environment and the tools to reach their aspirations, enabled by our strategic partnerships. Through youth work and creative facilitation, we provide needed interventions, tailored mentoring, training, project engagement, bespoke mentoring, counselling, respite, and diverse opportunities for young people aged 11-25 to enrich their networks.
With our respective expertise, we delivered the first STEAM Ahead Programme in partnership with the Rank Foundation over the recent Easter holiday. The pilot engaged 27 children in Years 4, 5, 6, and 7 who joined us at the Cape Adventure in Islington for a week-long pilot. Targeting those living in social housing, 76% of participants came from low-income backgrounds with 35% having English as an additional language and 68% live in single-parent households.
The week saw pupils engage in a range of activities to build their understanding of STEM topics and their real-world application. This included peer-led wellbeing sessions facilitated by youth workers, challenge-based learning sessions that had pupils apply Maths and English skills to build their own city plan, a Lego activity delivered by Mott Macdonald employees, and a trip to the Barbican to see how the principles of STEM present in the real-world.
The project was hugely successful with pupils reporting feeling more confident and resilient in their learning, more positive about the impending transition to secondary, and equipped with a better appreciation of the importance and relevance of STEM . In fact, 83% pupils agreeing they have a better understanding of the value of STEM. Following this proof of concept, we are looking for funding to offer this service to more families whose children would otherwise be left vulnerable to learning loss and negative social influence outside of school.
