With all the schools starting again, children in new school uniform, students hopeful to do better and schools desiring to up their game from last term, mentoring is one of the strategies many schools consider using more effectively or simply as an additional strategy.

For this reason schools are more vulnerable and there are a few things that you must avoid at your peril, if you want to have a successful mentoring programme.

1. Poor safeguarding:
With schools wanting to get support for children more external people may come in or there may be (like in some schools) an influx of new staff. So don’t judge a book by its cover and ensure that your safeguarding is tight. We don’t want any more horror stories like in the news!

2. Unskilled mentoring staff:
It is shocking but true; many people who are mentoring are not mentor trained. I visited one school and their mentoring lead was not even mentor trained! Mentoring is something that can be really good or really bad, so ensure your professional is professional and their mentoring CPD is current.

3. Lack of access:
So many schools have a desire to mentor students and support them on their way to success. However, many children due to the schools mentoring philosophy or referral process cannot even enter their mentoring provision. To avoid this make sure your programme is designed well and truly inclusive.

4. Stigmatisation:
Many students could do with mentoring but because of the students that predominantly use the provision, they do not want to be tarred with the same brush so avoid it! To ensure that your programme is effective, get rid of the deficit / correctional model. Avoid it like the Black Death.

5. Adult to Students only:
Where possible get students to mentor each other. This is a very effective form of mentoring but do make sure your students are up skilled, trained appropriately, given the appropriate amount of support and not over utilised as they are still studying themselves.

With September in the air and new hopes, dreams and possibilities here to be nurtured, use your mentoring opportunities and options wisely. As the only thing that is worse than having no mentor is having a bad mentor!

Happy mentoring

Image: advancedphotoshop.co.uk