#84 Social Enterprise with Karol Thornton

What this episode covers

On this weeks show we look at the lessons learned in the third sector mentoring and coaching young people can be transferred directly into the workplace. Karol Thornton from Yorkshire Mentoring and Youth In Mind tells us all about it. About Karol Thornton Karol Thornton from Leeds joins The Next 100 Days Podcast. Karol, pronounced Karl, has a background of working with young people. In the early 90s, he was drawn into social injustice and disaffected youth. The DNA that goes through all his work is social justice. He supports and works with children adolescents who are currently on the mental health spectrum, where Karol got to know Graham. This is a mentoring project that Karol (and Graham) is working on. Karol Thornton joins The Next 100 Days Podcast to talk about social enterprise, coaching and mentoring young people It’s about giving back. Karol started out by getting involved in local youth work in the city of Leeds in Yorkshire, England. This giving back, especially to young people has always been a feature of Karol’s work. Additionally, Karol Thornton teaches across the region. This also tends to be in the social sciences. Karol is proud of his work with the Workers Educational Association WEA https://www.wea.org.uk working with UNISON members around their individual CPD, Continuing Professional Development ( https://cpduk.co.uk) . In England and Wales, they have WEA regions which is all about adult learning. Karol also set up an organisation, called Yorkshire Mentoring. http://www.yorkshirementoring.org.uk This is all about mentoring young people and adults alike. They use a lot of coaching techniques. It is a community interest company. Karol is passionate about making a difference in people’s lives. Karol, is a facilitator, trainer, coach and mentor. This sees Karol facilitate a leadership training session for a college, or with a young mum who wants to get involved in volunteering. He then turns his hand to marketing to encourage more people to get involved. Graham says Karol is such an enthusiastic trainer. Getting involved in these social projects, means you must start thinking about areas that are maybe unusual for the entrepreneur. How and where you meet young people. Safeguarding them and yourself. Reducing the opportunity for things going wrong. Making sure that the young person’s Mum and Dad know you, know that you have had a DBS check and that you are credible. Youth In Mind The mentoring project where Karol and Graham met is called Youth in Mind. The aim of the project is to offer young people in the Bradford district who are currently on the mental health waiting list, someone from within the community to be a mentor for them. They themselves might not have the skills, and the mentor is all about inspiring the young person to find new ways forward. They may not have these skills in their own families, for whatever reason. They may come from some very challenging backgrounds. It’s not about bailing out the NHS etc. It is about helping a person. In the training Graham was involved in, Karol brought in a Youth Worker who suggested the young people we might be asked to mentor could be suffering from ‘low mood’. Means, being sad, depressed. So, the mentor is charged with helping the young person to see other opportunities for getting themselves out of this fug, possibly prior to their treatment starting even. Who has inspired you as a mentor? Who has been in your life and made that impact for you? Karol Thornton says it is a ‘growth mind-set’. In some families, there can be an attitude that they cannot do this. It is not something available for them. The growth mind-set says I will learn HOW to do this. So,

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