Buddy scheme success

27 March 2023

Here at The Fifth Trust, we’re always open to trying out new ways of doing things to make our students' experience the best it can be. And that’s where students Sue and Chelsea come in.

Sue, an established member of the Trust, was asked to be our first ever Fifth Trust Buddy to Chelsea, one of our new starters.

Our new buddy scheme aims to pair a current student with a new student to encourage an easier transition into The Fifth Trust.

We caught up with both Sue and Chelsea to see how they found it.

Sue said: “I was asked to be Chelsea’s buddy. My role was to chat to her, have lunch with her, and be there to answer questions Chelsea had.

“We spoke about a lot of things, such as family and Chelsea’s pet Labrador. I loved being a Buddy because it made me proud. I like helping people.”

Sue also mentioned that the buddy scheme made her gain confidence, and she was happy to make a friend through it.

Sue advised: “If you want to be a good buddy, don’t be nervous or scared, use your inner confidence, be a good listener and be understanding.”

Chelsea added: “Meeting someone straight away and knowing I had someone to talk to and spend time with made starting much easier.”

CEO Nikki Marley said: "We’re glad the scheme was a success, and we will now look at implementing it into our regular offering for some students.

"Anything we can do to guarantee the best start possible for our new students is worth exploring."

You can learn more about the services The Fifth Trust offers on the Activities page here.

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