Last Wednesday saw my first Step Up Day at Leeds City Academy. As part of the Humanities department, I was involved with the SMSC education discussing healthy relationships with both Year 8 and Year 10. It was a fantastic day and each group had such wonderful and varying thoughts and feelings about what makes up a healthy relationship.

The morning started with Year 10, where we looked at the signs of abuse in relationships and discussed the things you should see, feel and hear in situations with others. We then followed this discussion with the real life case study of popstar Rhianna who was abused by her former partner Chris Brown. We had an open discussion about that no matter how wonderful and happy your relationship may seem, especially on the outside, it could all change if abuse happens. Students said they left with a good amount of information to think about alongside the advice and guidance of what to do if abuse occurs in a relationship should they ever need it.

The Year 8 healthy relationships session was based around friendships and how they differ from boyfriend/girlfriend relationships. It was lovely watching the students discuss the different types of relationships in their lives and being incredibly honest about the good and bad parts of friendship. Two girls even sat and talked about what they liked and didn’t like about their friendships with each other. It was wonderful to see that openness and honesty amongst them.

All in all, it was a truly lovely day and I believe all students got the most out of it.