Member Article

Pupils rewarded for creating ‘fresh, inviting and informative’ tenant leaflet

School students from Chester-le-Street have been rewarded for their hard work after creating a new leaflet that will provide information to young tenants moving into their first ever home.

The students were set the task of designing a new leaflet, which was organised by local housing provider, Cestria Community Housing as part of the Building Brighter Futures project.

The project was completed by nine Year 11 pupils at Park View School to supply new tenants aged 16 to 25 with vital information for starting a tenancy.

The partnership between Cestria Community Housing and the Durham Education Business Partnership (Durham EBP), aims to bring local schools and businesses together to equip students with the skills needed for the world of work.

The six month Building Brighter Futures project aimed to give the teenagers challenges, designed to educate them about working within the housing sector.

The project has been praised by Cestria Community Housing who is committed to continuing this partnership in the future, as well as furthering relations with the school.

The students who took part in the project were invited to celebrate their hard work at an awards evening at Cestria offices on the Lambton Park Estate in Chester-le-Street last week.

Martin Warhurst, Director of Finance and Corporate Services for Cestria Community Housing, who was one of the hosts for the evening, said: “The style of the leaflet is fresh, inviting and informative. It really stands out from our other corporate leaflets and communicates to its intended audience – young tenants.

“It is great to be able to produce a leaflet for younger tenants, designed by them - it gives it great credibility.”

The leaflet aims to give vital, key information in a more informal and supportive manner to younger tenants who may have never lived independently before about paying their bills, managing their money, their first shop and tips on how to be a good tenant.

The students’ achievements were recognised through a host of award categories, from Most Committed Team and Individual to Rising Star for students that showed progress.

The winners received certificates and Metro Centre shopping vouchers. The Winning Leaflet Team was Diversatile Equalities made up of Annie O’Mara, Paul Whitfield and Jordan Beattie.

The Most Committed Team winners were Fusion including Tom Sirrell, Katelyn Dockery and Samantha Wilson and the Most Committed Individual prize was awarded to Jordan Beattie. The Rising Stars award was presented to Samantha Wilson and Lewis Greensmith.

In addition to the project, Cestria has also provided work experience placements for four students including Daniel Lawrence in Building Services, Paul Whitfield in Finance, Katelyn Dockery in Technical Services/ Architecture and Lewis Greensmith who is completing a photography placement.

David Nisbet, Assistant Headteacher from Park View School, said: “Cestria Community Housing created a fantastic opportunity for our students to really shine, giving them the confidence to work together on a real-life project and present their ideas to a live audience.

“The students are very excited that the literature they created will be used so extensively by a large local employer.”

Within the project the students have learnt about different careers within the housing industry and experienced mock interviews, career profiling, business events and various workshops.

The Durham EBP aims to bring businesses and education together to enrich the education of students and to enhance their employability skills.

Linda Fluke Business and Learning Officer from the Durham EBP, said: “The project has been a great success. The students have had the opportunity to work closely with inspirational employees from Cestria Community Housing on a range of exciting work- based challenges.

“The skills they have gained will be of great value to them in their future careers. We hope that the partnerships developed throughout this project will continue to thrive.”

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by Ailsa Macmillan .