Students at Chelsea Academy School & Sixth Form took part in Chelsea Foundation’s National Citizen Service programme this autumn half-term.

Young people experienced epic challenges including a Green Park residential and Go Ape visit, an enterprise social action workshop and a powerful Black History Month talk from the Foundation education department.

A total of 15 teenagers from Chelsea Academy School joined the week-long stint of residential activities and social action planning run by Chelsea Foundation, which has been voted number one in London and ranks in the top 10 nationally.

The young people, aged between 15 and 17, completed a three-day stay away from home where they had to live independently and work together in teams to navigate various challenges. For the last two days of the week, Stamford Bridge hosted a series of workshops aimed at equipping participants with key skills to plan their social action as a team and then pitch their idea.

This included public speaking, teamwork, enterprise and money management, gaining confidence to deliver their social action this November, hoping to emulate the fantastic work from the summer.

The week finished with a trip to Battersea Go Ape to round off the students' series of epic challenges, and a brilliant talk from the Foundation’s education team on Black History, celebrating Chelsea’s history of black excellence.

Students got involved in fantastic discussions which explored Black History within Chelsea FC history. They designed their own shirts taking inspiration from the match-worn shirts of icons such as Ruud Gullit, Eniola Aluko and Paul Canoville. They were also given a chance to enter the Foundation’s club-wide shirt design competition!

Project officer Stephen Ganley said: ‘Having young people from Chelsea Academy take part in NCS this autumn with the Foundation was great to see. Completing challenges together as a team, planning some great social action to be delivered to help the local community, experiencing a thought-provoking talk from Alfie about Black History, incorporating Chelsea FC history and wider sources gave students a huge insight and discussion.’

The NCS graduates now have the chance to continue their community work as ambassadors on the NCS graduate programme, Changemakers, with the opportunity to one day become NCS staff members themselves.

Changemakers is now open to everyone aged 15-18. To get involved, please email [email protected].