Starfish: Mentoring young minds (2024)

9 September 2023

Lyn Woods

Remote video URL

Lyn Woods learns about Starfish from Tracy Wood (Children & Youth Department).

What is Starfish?

Starfish is a Salvation Army mentoring programme for children and young people in primary and secondary schools between 9 and 16 years of age. It is offered to schools free of charge.

What does the mentoring programme teach?

School is a significant space, where lifelong friendships are made, where confidence and self-esteem are built or shattered and where life skills are refined. Starfish is focused on boosting emotional health and wellbeing, including personal development and life skills.

The mentoring programme can particularly benefit young people whose rate of learning and/or level of motivation is suffering because of behavioural, social or emotional issues, those who are at risk of exclusion, those struggling with the effects of the Covid-19 pandemic or those who need confidential support for personal issues of any kind.

Working within a school’s student wellbeing support, Starfish provides committed and trusted adults to work with young people who need some additional support, without which they would be at risk of not meeting their full potential.

92% of mentees said Starfish helped boost their confidence.

Where is Starfish active?

There are 21 corps across 11 divisions engaging with schools through Starfish. They include York, Forest of Dean, Shotts, Plymouth Exeter Hall Whitleigh and Abergavenny. Joining them soon is the fresh expression at Ebbsfleet. With 30 more Starfish mentors joining the 55 existing ones in November, the programme will then be active in 17 primary schools and 10 secondary schools.

When and how did Starfish come about?

Although Starfish has been around for several years, it has been developed further over the past two years by the Children and Youth Department, so that corps and centres can provide their local schools with a free service that will have a real impact on the lives of children and young people.

At Chatham, for example, because of our relationship with the school, we were able to provide Christmas parcels to 50 families and sent 5 children, who perhaps wouldn’t get a holiday normally, to the divisional summer camp.

If you’re passionate about taking your ministry into schools and making a difference in the lives of young people, then Starfish is for you!

Who can become a mentor?

The beauty of Starfish is that you don’t have to be a youth or children’s worker. If you’ve got two hours to spare a week, an hour for preparation and an hour to spend with a young person, if you can sit and listen and respond to the feelings of a young person, you could be a mentor.

What do teachers say about it?

One teacher gave this feedback: ‘After seeing the confidence these children have gained through the mentoring programme, I would confidently recommend this programme to any school.’

The Small Fish Podcast

A series of 14 five-minute episodes to help children transition from primary to secondary school, as they become small fish in a big pond. The episodes help young people work through important questions and potential sources of anxiety, such as getting lost or coping with homework.

The Small Fish Podcast

Bounce

A ball-based wellbeing resource that gets children talking, listening and, of course, bouncing! Based on the five ways to wellbeing, the game uses letter cards to facilitate conversation and build relationships, helping reluctant talkers to share how they feel.

Bounce

Mindset

In partnership with the Army’s Addiction Services, this free online course equips leaders to help young people feel more resilient and able to cope with life. Contact the Children and Youth team to sign up for the next Mindset course, which takes place in January 2024.

Children and Youth Schoolswork Conference

The department’s annual conference is for anyone who recognises the importance of the Army’s presence in schools. Teachers, volunteers, governors and students will talk about how it is and how it could be. It will equip you to explore mission opportunities and tell new stories of hope and transformation. It will take place on 16 March 2024 in Warwick.

CY Schoolswork Conference

How can corps get involved?

Find out more by watching the Mentoring Children & Young People video, emailing childrenyouth@salvationarmy.org.uk or connecting with the department through Facebook.