The aim of the Warminster School Peer Mentoring Programme is to provide our younger pupils with individual support from older, more experienced pupils in order to ensure that all pupils at Warminster School feel valued, empowered and safe. An important secondary aim is to provide leadership opportunities to Year 11 and Sixth Form pupils.

Innovative co-curricular activities lie at the heart of our educational offering at Warminster.  As a co-educational school with an age range from 2–18, seeking to explore inventive new ways to both stretch and inspire our pupils is a constant challenge.  With our sense of community regarded as one of our most valuable assets, finding ways to maximise the bonds and relationships across year groups is central to our ethos. Our Mission is to empower older pupils with the skills and values of a mentor. Through developing Mentors with the core values, this program will foster a culture of peer support.

The Core Values of the Pupil Mentoring Program are:

  • Confidentiality – we believe in confidentiality for our Mentees but also as part of the training. Anything that is shared during training should be treated as confidential.
  • Respect – between everyone, Mentors, Mentees and Coaches.
  • Kindness – every person involved in the Mentoring Program will act with kindness. All interactions will be guided by this principle and this should be taken into your wider school life as a role model for younger pupils.
  • Honesty – everybody in the program will operate with honesty, even when it may feel kinder to lie.
  • Support – we all agree to support one another non-judgmentally. Support is available to all parties in the Program and will be offered and received graciously.

As Mentors we value:

Listening – Exploring feelings helps people understand their own situation better and work out what options they have open to them.
Confidentiality – When people feel safe and have trust they are more likely to open up.
Empowering people to make their own decisions – We believe that everybody has the right to make their own decisions. Telling someone what to do takes responsibility away from them.
Accepting people for who they are – We want our Mentees to talk to us openly without worrying about being judged.
Human contact – We understand that by simply listening to someone with undivided attention can help them feel valued and better about their worries.

The Process

In the Summer Term, applications are welcomed from Year 10, 11 and Sixth Form pupils who wish to take on the role of Pupil Mentor. Only those pupils who demonstrate the necessary skills and commitment are selected as mentors in order to ensure the productivity of the relationship between the mentor and mentee. Training is then provided, focusing on fundamental listening and communication skills to help mentors get to know their mentee and establish a strong relationship.

At the start of the following academic year, pupils from Years 7-10 are invited to join the programme and are allocated a Pupil Mentor. Careful consideration is given to the specific interests and personalities of both parties when allocating mentors to mentees.

Mentors arrange weekly meetings with their mentees in a quiet area of the school where they can meet, chat and when appropriate, set targets or goals that the younger person can work towards. Mentors are issued with the Warminster School Mentor booklet which has been designed to offer practical advice and guidance. Pupil Mentors are also allocated a member of the staff support team whom they can turn to when they need to offload and seek guidance.

Boarding Mentoring Programme

Alongside the aforementioned Pupil Mentoring Programme, in the Summer Term we now run a mentoring programme specifically for those pupils in Year 9 who will soon be making the transition to the senior boarding houses.

In addition to being allocated a selected Lower Sixth Boarding Mentor, the group of Year pupils meet on a weekly basis with Mentors to take part in bonding activities to make the transition for the younger pupils as smooth and comfortable as possible.

Benefits for younger pupils

  • A positive role model to look up to.
  • The opportunity to learn more about themselves.
  • The chance to share ideas and set achievable goals.
  • The opportunity to unlock potential in themselves – improved attainment, increased confidence.
  • Guidance on finding the best path for them.

Benefits for Mentors

  • Development of key skills;
  • Opportunity to learn more about themselves
  • Unlocking potential in others
  • Unlocking potential in themselves – improved attainment

Our longer-term vision for our Pupil Peer Mentoring Programme is that it will cascade, spanning both Prep and Senior pupils over time. We firmly believe that peer mentoring programmes can offer a unique support system to benefit all involved both academically and pastorally. To find out what our pupils think of the programme, please read the testimonials below. Please contact Mrs Shanks for further information.