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This great feature on the BBC's website (published Dec 2022) covers all bases about what we're doing, with lots of facts and stories. You can read the whole article by clicking the link below. https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-gloucestershire-63819787
Kai is the Operations Manager for the Community and Mentoring Department at Young Glos, based in Gloucester City. Kai has been in this role since October 2023. This role involves day to day management of the community and mentoring department along with safeguarding duties, prior to this, Kai spent time as a Delivery Manager for Young Glos
Kai has a background of leading projects within Adult Social Care for Gloucestershire County Council.
In Kai’s free time she enjoys Pilates and taking walks.
One piece of advice Kai would give to her young self would be…
‘Let it be, live in the present’.
Elisha is the Gloucestershire Mentoring Programme Manager at The Door and joined in November 2021. Elisha’s role is very versatile and includes meeting, assessing and getting to know young people and volunteer mentors. Elisha works closely with young people and volunteer mentors, finding a suitable match; this helps the young person to receive the right support as early as possible. Elisha gives support and guidance with regular check-ins throughout all mentoring relationships. Alongside this, Elisha is busy being a part of the volunteer training, developing the website and managing the social media accounts, all while helping the whole programme to run smoothly.
Since finishing university, Elisha has been working in the charity sector supporting volunteers, as she loves to work with people and within the local community. Elisha also volunteers herself!
Elisha enjoys cooking, pottery and getting out in nature, walking with her puppy.
One piece of advice Elisha would give to her younger self would be…
"We can spend a lot of our lives trying to please others, spend time learning to believe and trust in yourself. It can go a long way to helping you to express yourself’.
Jill is the Gloucestershire Mentoring Programme Development Manager, and has been with the Programme since it started in November 2021. Jill is at the helm, overseeing strategic activities to develop the service, supporting partners to collaborate on service delivery.
Jill’s background includes time as a secondary school teacher then transitioning to the heritage sector, eventually becoming a local government head of service, leading cultural and trading services.
Away from work, Jill is keen on arts and culture and enjoys visiting places that offer visual and culinary delights; at home, you'll often catch Jill immersed in textile or garden projects. Jill also has a couple of volunteering roles and two lively grandchildren to keep her on her toes! To unwind, Jill likes to hang out with loved ones, especially if it’s in or near water - the garden spa, warm sea, or a nice pool.
One piece of advice Jill would give to her younger self would be…
“Embrace the lessons life has to offer.” There's so much we don't know, and we make mistakes along the way – that’s okay, we just need to learn from our experiences, good and bad. It helps us navigate life's twists and turns and get better at managing relationships.
Teresa Harding joined as Gloucestershire Mentoring Programme Administrator in Jan 2024, bringing 20 years’ plus of administration experience and is using her coordinating, planning and scheduling skills to support the GMP collaboration as it progresses into the future.
Teresa is a volunteer mentor for The Door and after one year of mentoring, recognised the positive impact it can have, for both the mentee and the mentor. She is thrilled to be supporting GMP as a full time member of staff.
In her spare time, Teresa loves to spend time in her camper van with a bit of wild swimming and the occasional tandem skydive.
One piece of advice Teresa would give to her younger self …..
“Make choices in life for YOU and go for it, instead of doing what other people expect of you. Worrying what other people think, may lead you down a long and winding path”.
Agnes Kessling is our Mentor Coordinator at The Nelson Trust Women’s Centre based in Gloucester. Agnes has been in this role since June 2023, which involves recruiting, training and supervising the team of volunteer mentors. Agnes also manages a Young Women’s Keyworker supporting young people with an increased need for support.
Agnes brings with her a wealth of experience and knowledge, previously working as a Child Exploitation Keyworker as well as a Support Worker and later a Clinical Assistant in a Specialist Therapy Centre for PTSD and Trauma. This involved supporting a team of Psychotherapists and running creative groups with clients. Agnes also has research experience with the University of Bristol, working on a project looking at the impact of childhood trauma on risk taking behaviour in adolescence.
In Agnes’ free time she loves Art, drumming, getting out into nature and also volunteers in a community goat herding project!
One piece of advice Agnes would give to her young self would be…
‘Take every opportunity you can and don’t sweat the small stuff’
Max Harris is our Community Mentoring Project Coordinator for South Gloucestershire. He has enjoyed this role since the Autumn of 2022. His role involves recruiting, training and managing mentors along with advertising the service for referrals of young people, aged 16 to 25 years of age in the South Gloucestershire area.
Max brings a wealth of experience having started working with socially excluded young people 25 years ago. He then went on to specialise in substance misuse, working with young people and adults. In more recent years, Max had worked exclusively supporting care experienced young people in partnership with Social Services.
In Max’s free time he enjoys playing music, taking city breaks, eating pizza and hanging out with his pets.
One piece of advice Max would give to his young self would be…
‘Be the change you want to see’.