People who attend Pencalenick School describe how it's a life changer.
Category
🗞
NewsTranscript
00:00We've asked a parent, a current student and a former student for their opinion on the potential
00:06closure of Pencalynic School's boarding facility. This video is only a snapshot of the depth of
00:14feeling and concern that many people have with the possibility of this facility being lost.
00:22Hi, I'm Lynn. My son went to Pencalynic from the age of 11 to 16 and he used to board initially
00:28a couple of nights a week and then as he got to year 10-11 he boarded four nights a week.
00:34I think it's a really important facility for young people. It gives them the opportunity
00:38to grow in confidence. It teaches them independent living skills so they have to
00:43make sure that their bedrooms are tidy, make their beds, they get the opportunity to cook
00:48and to prepare meals for themselves under supervision. They get the opportunity to
00:52take part in after-school activities that aren't always accessible to those with additional needs
00:58in a mainstream school if they need an extra level of support. It enables them to have friendships
01:06with like-minded individuals. It helps them to engage with lots of other adults that they
01:12perhaps wouldn't encounter if they were just at home and more importantly or perhaps as importantly
01:19it gives us as parents a break, a much-needed break because sometimes our young people can be
01:24very difficult and challenging and just to have that opportunity to have some breathing space
01:30in the week so that we can recharge our batteries and be fully functional to help them through the
01:35weekend is a really much much needed facility. Solo winner. Tell me, where do you go to school?
01:43Panhellenic. And what's your favourite thing about Panhellenic school?
01:49Boarding. Why's that? Because spending time with your friends and going out to the park
01:59and the beach and the shops. Okay and what kind of thing do you do when you don't
02:10go out to the shops or the beach? We play games and chat. And chat, yes.
02:22Play cricket. So you do sports, yeah? Yeah. And is it fun? Yeah. Yeah? And tell me what would you do
02:29if you didn't do boarding? Would you do any of these things? No. Why's that? Because all my friends
02:38live so far away. And do you only get to see them at school? Yeah. Yeah, so you don't have any
02:44friends at home, do you? No. So you'd be at home really? Yeah. Yeah, okay. And when you hear that
02:50they're thinking about closing the boarding, how does that make you feel? Sad. Sad, yeah. And you
02:56don't want it to close, do you? No. We don't want it to close because we know you're having such a
03:00brilliant time. Yeah. Yeah, all right. Thank you, Llywelyn. I'm Jack. I went to Penclin school
03:08and boarded for, well, initially it was one night and then I moved to two nights, which I found to
03:15be very important and helpful for me to learn independent living skills, like for example
03:23doing my own washing and making my bed and also making different sorts of foods, doing like
03:29making meals. And I also found it important because I didn't really have many other friends
03:33outside of school at this time, so it was really nice that I could extend, like have a longer day
03:42because at the end of school, if I wasn't bored and I was just thinking I'm going to go home,
03:47what am I actually going to do? And so it reduced my anxiety because I knew I had friends I could
03:53see. It helped me to learn better because I knew I wouldn't have to travel, which would tire me out
03:59and then I wouldn't be able to concentrate as much. And then for the family, it's probably
04:06very important because it gave us all a bit of respite, just have a fresh new environment for
04:11when I came back. And I tried lots of different things, which I wouldn't normally do, like
04:15we went for lots of nice walks. Everyone was really nice and yeah, it was just a nice little,
04:21I know it sounds a bit cheesy, but like a little family, it was nice. We would have
04:27the opportunity to help with things around school. For example, at Christmas, we could help
04:32put up the Christmas tree and stuff, which was kind of nice because it felt like you're actually
04:36contributing to help the school. I was quite upset too because it is very important and
04:45I know for me and lots of my peers who boarded, it was very important. So those who are there now,
04:52I don't think it's fair that they're going to miss out on the opportunity because
04:58it's a big part of my school experience. I was quite upset because it's like a very
05:06important part of my time there.