The Cellar Space
The Cellar Space opened in January 1998. It is based in the converted cellar of a pub, which was called The Furnival. The Cellar Space works with young people between the ages of 11 and 16 who are finding it difficult to engage with mainstream school.
Young people are referred to The Cellar Space from a range of Secondary Schools as well as by other agencies such as LEA Attendance,Prevention teams, Inclusion and Social Services.
The Cellar Space is committed to providing a safe learning space for young people. We aim to create a welcoming and supportive learning environment that is free from fear of judgement and failure for young people.
The Cellar Space way of working is underpinned by an unqualified belief in the unique potential of each young person and a committment to working with young people to discover and build on their area of strength. As Young people develop a belief in themselves, they invariably gain the confidence necessary to be able to access the next stage of their learning and development.
The Cellar Space believes in the importance of listening to young people and encouraging them to take responsibility for their own learning and development. Each young person attending The Cellar Space has an individual programme of work that is decided between the young person and Cellar staff according to the expressed interests and needs of each young person.
Young people usually attend The Cellar Space between one and three sessions each week. A session is two hours long. Between 3 and 6 young people attend each session and lots of time is devoted to 1:1 work. Young people undertake a range of activities and projects during sessions, including various arts and crafts projects, IT and typing skills, cooking, reading, maths, art therapy and social and emotional development programs.
Other activities enjoyed by young people at The Cellar Space have included pottery, designing and constructing scrap metal sculptures, and varies outdoor pursuit activities.
The Cellar Space staff are committed to working closely with the young person, their parent/carer, school, and other agencies to review the development and progress of each young person.
Groupwork
In addition to individual referrals, The Cellar Space works with groups of young people from local secondary schools. Groups of 12-14 young people come for one session per week over a 12 week period.
Issues covered during the course of these group work programmes include school attendance, friendship and bullying, self-esteem, and teamwork skills. The aim of these groups is to work in partnershiip with school staff to support young people in overcoming barriers to engagement at school.
Staffing
Currently the Cellar Space is made up of one full-time staff member, 3 part-time staff members including an Art Therapist, 2 sessional English teachers, 1 sessional I.T teacher and 4 Volunters.
How to get involved
To meet the growing demand of provision at the Cellar Space, we are always looking for people with a passion for providing or supporting opportunities to engage disadvantaged young people in learning. To this day we have been supported by volunteering students, community members and specialised professionals such as teachers, artists and therapists. The Cellar Space believes that through the support of indiviuals such as these we are able to offer our Young People greater support and oportunities for emotional, social, physical and intellectual growth. If you are interested in assisting the work of the Cellar Space, or would like to find out more information about our work, please feel free to contact us Mon-Fri 9am to 5pm.
Cellar Space Learning Mentor: Job Application Pack
Below you can download materials for the Cellar Space Learning Mentor position. The job advert is currently displayed on the Furnival homepage.
Covering LetterJob Description
Person Specification
Application Form