Carla

Carla was referred to our Raising Achievement Project towards the end of  her Year 10 at Rhyddings by her English teacher. We knew that she was a capable, hard-working student who we felt would benefit from additional input to guide her in her preparation for GCSEs and to help her overcome any obstacles which her dyslexia might be causing.

What did she do?

The one-to-one sessions, which the SRB Project is usually able to give, meant that Carla had some time each week when she could receive extra input from a teacher experienced in working with SpLD students. She also had a time and a place where she could complete extra revision tasks with support on hand if she needed it (which she rarely did!)

Time to talk

Probably even more important was the time it gave her just to talk - to her teacher mentor and other students on the SRB Project. Time to talk is not something often possible in today's pressure-cooker schools, and its value is not sufficiently appreciated. During this time she built up an informal mentoring relationship with a younger SRB student who had similar difficulties with the oddities of English spelling patterns! Together they worked on a structured, cumulative spelling programme as well as revision and coursework.

So, what happened?

At GCSE, Carla gained eight passes which enabled her to begin an NVQ catering course at a local college.

And then?

Young Chef of the Year! (. . . "but you can't beat school dinners" . . .)

One year later, Carla received the award of Young Chef of the Year, winning the regional final in Lancaster. For this, her winning recipe was comfit duck leg on mixed lettuce and sauté potatoes with a mustard dressing and Madeira sauce, followed by grilled sea bass on a bed of fried plum tomatoes and fennel with a white wine chive and saffron course, with apple and blackberry fool for dessert. But, just to prove that success hasn't gone to her head, Carla says that, "You still can't beat school dinners!"

Posh Spice, David Beckham, Michael Schumacher . . . 

During her first catering year, Carla catered at events all over the UK, seeing many celebrities in close up. She has catered at Silverstone in the mud, Old Trafford for the Alex Ferguson testimonial dinner, Twickenham, the Grand National and there have been rumours concerning the Palace.

When asked what she would do when she completed her catering course, she said, "Whatever I want"!

Closing the circle

Carla became one of the SRB Project mentors passing on to other SRB students, the extensive knowledge she has gained since she left Rhyddings High. Her mentoring relationship with a student experiencing difficulties similar to those she met has been highly successful.

And now?

After winning an Outstanding Mentoring Award from East Lancs Education Business Partnerships, Carla has moved out of the area to take up a post at a prestigious hotel in Cambridge. From there she moved on to other positions.

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