African Caribbean
Fishpool Awards Evening 2008
The annual Fishpool Awards ceremony once again saw the Guildhall packed with parents, students, teachers and other guests. Now in its 8th year, Fishpool celebrates the achievements and aspirations of young Black people in Gloucestershire. Our work ties in perfectly with the new National Strategies, namely, The Black Pupils' Achievement Programme (BPAP) in secondary schools and The Black Children's Achievement Project (BCAP) in primary schools. These Strategies will be launched at the beginning of December at Severn Vale School. We are grateful to the school for offering their support.
The enthusiastic audience saw performances and presentations from all the Fishpool schools: Beaufort Community, Bishops' College, Brockworth Enterprise, Churchdown and Severn Vale. Barnwood Park students and St. Peter's High were also represented.
Students talked about their achievements, the activities they have been engaged in throughout the year and their intentions for the future. Some danced, some sang, some produced scripts and presentations and others supported behind the scenes.
During the year, the Fishpool students have worked with a professional script writer from the Royal Court Theatre, have participated in workshops with the Everyman Theatre and have taken part in peer mentoring, job-shadowing and a conference where they gave a presentation to a large audience and took part in a workshop with renowned Black writer and educationalist Professor Gus John. This was through the University of West England in Bristol.
The special Pam Dennis Awards winners were:
- Beaufort - Shauna Blake
- Bishops' College - Jared Johnson
- Brockworth - Jahmeel Mesa-Medley
- Churchdown - Barbara Mwashigadi
- Severn Vale - Kyle James Bryan
Haltia Watkins (Learning Mentor) and Dee Russell-Thomas (Founder of Fishpool) from The Race Equality and Diversity Service worked together to organise this event. The Fishpool coordinators in each school have worked hard to ensure their pupils have the opportunities and strategies to succeed and fulfil their aspirations. Dave Page (Severn Vale) and Clayton Gardner (Bishops' College) did a marvellous job compering the whole evening whilst Andrew Golightly (Beaufort) stage-managed throughout. Once again Anita Anson and her helpers provided everyone with mouth-watering Caribbean delights.
The annual BEAT (Black Educated and Talented) newsletter was distributed to all. It provides detailed examples of all the inter-agency work and activities going on throughout the year.
In an age when so often all we hear are negative stories about young Black people, it is a pleasure to learn of all the positive, successful activities and achievements that are taking place within our county. Certificates were presented by ex-students, all of whom are achieving in their chosen field (graduates, lawyers, youth workers, national sports people, musicians, etc) and are inspirational Black role models.
We are also delighted to hear that this year, the Emagine Awards are including a special section for 'Fishpool Ambassadors' and a number of our students will receive acknowledgment for their involvement with our project and for their support with The Black Pupils Achievement Programme.
Dee Russell-Thomas
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