Pupils in Birmingham are being asked to weigh up risky scenarios, including what they would do if asked to join a gang, as part of the Circle of Friends Project.
The workshops, which include role play and group discussion, are being taught in five schools across the city, with three more starting the programme in the New Year.
“It’s hard to know what I’d do because if you refuse to join, they might hurt you,” said one 12-year-old boy who was taking part in a morning session at Nishkam High School.
The project is called Circle of Friends, because it is only open to groups of children who know each other and can be mentored together.
Each scenario is followed up with a group discussion led by trained youth workers from The Children’s Society.
Youth worker Furat Suffina said: “The friendship aspect is crucial in terms of the group bonding and the group feeling comfortable to talk together.
“We’re really trying to strengthen those friendships and the support they can offer each other because, once we’ve done our interventions and we’re gone, we really want the positives they have learned to carry on.”
Another 13-year-old student from Nishkam High School took part in a role play about peer pressure, acting out a scenario which he had rehearsed with his friends.
“It’s something I’ve gone through myself and it’s a really hard thing. You start chilling with the wrong crowd, they start making you smoke, do all that nonsense and it also takes you away from your family a little bit.”
He added: “I got out of it with the help of my mom and mentoring and this is good because my friends here care about me and now they know they are not alone if it happens to them.”
Key Stage 3 Lead, Byron Dale, said he’s seen a shift in students’ attitudes.
“Circle of Friends has been working closely with our students, and it has been great to have them come into our school.
“It’s had a really positive impact on their attitude towards future goals and they are always looking forward to the next session.”
The £136,000 year-long project is being funded by the Violence Reduction Partnership and Birmingham’s Community Safety Team, with each group completing 8 weeks’ worth of workshops.
West Midlands Police and Crime Commissioner Simon Foster said: “Mentoring entire peer groups in this way is an innovative approach, which is using the power of friendship to help keep young people safe.
“Schools who refer young people to this programme are giving them valuable time to think about how they might respond to a whole host of challenging and dangerous scenarios which would be difficult to navigate in the moment.
“These young people are being encouraged not to face these problems alone and are able to discuss their decision-making with youth workers and their friends.”
