Richmond upon Thames College (RuTC) is proud of its 15 students who graduated in January 2021 from the Circl Leadership Programme in partnership with Tails, gaining a Professional Leadership Qualification worth £1,500.
When students returned to college in September 2020, 15 RuTC students from different course areas started their virtual Leadership Programme, organised by Circl and founded in 2018. Circl’s missions is “to build a world where anyone, regardless of their background, can learn to lead. The way to get there is through real world coaching experience alongside the next generation of diverse leaders.”
The programme not only help students to develop leadership skill, but also supports managers to become better mentors. For this programme, 15 RuTC students were paired with 15 managers from the Richmond company Tails, which sells customised dog food. Students and mentors had weekly sessions and one to one calls. Students benefitted from mentoring with support on their challenges and goal setting along with productivity and creativity, whilst mentors from the company gained coaching and leadership skills.
One student commented, "I have been able to develop professionally and personally as a result of the Circl Leadership Programme. Professionally, I do not have much experience and I found this to be very difficult while entering the world of work. The Programme taught me how to build good working relationships and how to act in a professional setting. It has also improved my communication skills and made me feel more confident when speaking to new people."
Other students commented that as a result of the programme, they felt more confident in taking mentoring roles, such as teaching a friend how to drive, and that the programme helped them to push through difficult times in their life. Others found part time jobs through the skills they gained.
A representative from Tails said, "Meeting with a future leader was like a breath of fresh air, it was great to meet someone from outside of my usual bubble. I loved meeting young people with such bold ambitions, with their working life ahead of them."
