Leeds Faith in Schools: Supporting Young People Across Leeds - By Beccy Pont

My name is Beccy from Leeds Faith in Schools! We are a mission partner organisation at St Paul’s. Across nine different high schools Leeds Faith in Schools work alongside staff to provide support for their students in many different ways! Through one to one mentoring sessions and group work we can ensure that children who are affected by poor mental health are supported and given a chance to journey to positive mental health. Through our lunch clubs we can encourage and support year 7 students who are new to high school settle into high school life and form positive friendships. Through our after school drop ins we can partner with local communities to provide a safe fun space for young people who are lonely to engage with others and form a strong community of their own.

Our team is currently made up of 9 staff members which is a big growth just within the recent months! Made up of Ben, our team leader, Pip and Emma, our administrators, and Kim, Louisa, Maria, Molly, Beccy and Mark, our school's workers, we are able to continue working in our current partnered schools while anticipating the new partnerships that are forming in others.

There are so many amazing testimonies from the work team LFIS does and each one is a

testimony to God’s goodness as he works in the lives of the young people we engage with

through our work. Here is one example of a recent mentee who worked with one of our team members:

“Last term I saw a young person who had been involved in gangs and fights in the past and changed schools for a fresh start. He’d really struggled with anger in the past and had had a hard upbringing. We met weekly for a couple of months, went through a self paced anger course and listened to him. He’d really turned things around and the final time I saw him said he was feeling a lot calmer, felt he had good strategies in place and is on track to pass his GCSEs this summer with a scholarship to a sixth form. We’re not trained therapists or counselors - sometimes the main thing we do is listen and build relationships, and we all have a heart to help young people.”

There is so much going on through Leeds Faith in Schools and there are many ways you can support us in our work. To find out more about our day to day work, follow “Leeds Faith in Schools” on Facebook or “@teamlfis” on Instagram.

Pray! God is working through team LFIS and you can join in praying for the team, for the work we do and for the young people we impact.

Giving! Many of the resources we use and the training team get comes from the generous

donations whether a one off or regular gift every donation has a big impact!

Volunteering! You can join us! Email info@lfis.org if you are interested in volunteering and to see what opportunities there are!