​Schools Alumni Week is an initiative established by education charity Future First in a bid to raise awareness of the importance of role models that children from disadvantaged backgrounds can relate to.

People are brought up in different places and experience things differently. These differences often present a disadvantage for many young people. Statistics even show how just under 50% of disadvantaged children do not know anyone in a job they would like to do. This needs to change.

There are several forms of disadvantage; these include location, ethnicity, income, additional needs (SEND), etc. All these impact opportunities a child may have. Schools Alumni Week aims to tackle this as many young people are missing out on experiences which could be valuable to them.

Here’s how you can get involved:

Raise awareness and spread the word

The goal set by Future First is to have every state school and college in the UK as well as every pupil supported by a community of alumni. In order to achieve this, spreading the word will be essential.

Future First have released a few suggested posts you can post on social media to build conversation surrounding the topic and increasing awareness on the initiative.

With it being just one week away, below are two great examples.

Example 1:

‘Are you ready for the UK’s first #SchoolsAlumniWeek? There’s just one week to go – join us and @futurefirstorg in shining a light on the importance and positive impact of relatable role models for the most disadvantaged students. Here’s how:

www.futurefirst.org.uk/schools-alumni-week’

Example 2:

‘Are you passionate about improving life chances for young people? So are we! @futurefirstorg’s #SchoolsAlumniWeek kicks off next week, find out how you can do your bit in raising awareness of relatable role models for every student:

www.futurefirst.org.uk/schools-alumni-week’

Make use of free classroom resources

Future First has released their very own guide with a list of resources you can use to implement alumni and relatable role models into your lessons.

These resources can be used as part of an assembly or as classroom material.

A Q&A activity can be a great option. Alumni can speak about their journey since leaving school up until now. In this Q&A, students are able to ask questions and learn more about potential opportunities and pathways they can take after school. It would be best to bring in a group of alumni. This way students can hear from relatable role models who have taken different paths or chosen different careers. This activity will be useful for any year group.

Another idea is a leaver’s assembly presentation, where you would recruit at least 1 alumni to share their journey since leaving school. Additionally they would be encouraging leaver’s to join the alumni network by discussing the value of joining.

This should give you an idea of what the School’s Alumni Week involves and why it’s a great initiative. If you would like to find out more information, head over to the Future First website: https://futurefirst.org.uk/