A university duo enforced their filmmaking expertise at the Rathbone centre in Huddersfield.

Liam Buckley and David Edon of Huddersfield University spent the day interviewing the young people and the workers at the Yorkshire centre. Their primary goal was to answer the common question of why some youngsters are unable to succeed in mainstream education.

Liam Buckley

Liam said: “We wanted to gain an insight into the exceptional work that goes unnoticed at Rathbone and we chose to illustrate their contributions by using our camera work skills”.

This centre works mainly with the Youth Choices Programme that deals with a range of education and training programmes designed for young people aged 14 to 16, who are experiencing difficulties in their mainstream education and have been fully or partially excluded from school.

The pair filmed the young people engaging in their daily tasks, both in and outside the classroom. To get a broad perspective of how the centre ran on a day to day basis, they even followed the youngsters to the gym in the afternoon.

“The atmosphere was great” said Liam. “It was a real family environment, where everybody had a great deal of respect for one another and everyone wanted to be there”.

The centre manager, Rechelle Boothroyd said that the school was set up for those who have disengaged in mainstream education for reasons such as bullying or bad behaviour. She added: “My entry requirement would be for the student to actually want to come here”.

Rathbone thrives on the concentrated support that is offered for their students. One youngster said that there is no favouritism and all students are treated equally. As a result of small teaching sessions, students feel they receive the right amount of tuition that is essential for their academic growth.

The tutor, John Bell said: “When you look at the ratio between staff and kids, we have a maximum of eight kids in one session. They get a lot more one to one - they all have their own specific learning difficulties and we can address that with a personal approach because we know the kids”.

Not only does the short film reveal the hard work that goes on at the Huddersfield centre, but it illustrates how Rathbone has managed to unearth many talents from its students outside of the education curriculum. One that could not go unnoticed was the MC-ing twosome, who unveiled their rapping talents, busting a rhyme about adversity they have experienced in their lives.

To view the video please click on the following link: http://vimeo.com/9730861  

Written by Media Intern Liam Buckley.