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Dawn Butler, MP with young peer mentors

To celebrate Volunteering England's Student Volunteer Week on Tuesday 23rd February, young volunteer peer mentors from across England met with Dawn Butler MP, Minister for Young Citizens and Youth Engagement, for a unique meeting on the London Eye. The student volunteers discussed their experiences of peer mentoring with the Minister at the MBF organised event, to emphasise how important this type of one-to-one support is for young people.

The Minister was told first hand by the peer mentors about the many ways young people help other young people. The young people also expressed the value of including this type of one-to-one support in future government proposals and stressed how important a role being a voluntary peer mentor is.

Dawn Butler MP said:
“It’s fantastic to hear how young people are helping other young people to develop key skills through peer mentoring. The benefits to everyone involved are immensely rewarding. Peer volunteering, not only builds confidence amongst young people but also empowers individuals and provides one-to-one support on a range of different issues.

Peer-to-peer mentoring is an effective tool for reaching the parts that some adults just cannot. Having young people who understand modern living is invaluable and it was a pleasure to meet these young people who are dedicated to ensuring that other young people get the help and support they need."

Shelly Johnston from Action for Children's 24/7 project added:
"I love helping people. One-to-one peer mentoring helps people to build confidence and helps people to be more outgoing. As I have been in the same situation as the mentees it really helps me to relate to them. I find it really rewarding. If I could describe peer mentoring in one word I would say: 'Brilliant!"

Katie Keech, a student volunteer from IntoUniversity, explained that:
“Before I was a peer mentor, I didn’t realise how much impact I could have in helping other people. It’s been great to see how the young person I have been helping feels much more confident and happy through the work they are doing with me.”

MBF used Student Volunteer Week as an opportunity to promote the wonderful work that volunteer peer mentors are doing to build confidence and self esteem across the country. Peer mentoring is at the heart of the Children’s plan and has been introduced to help with a wide spectrum of issues. Peer mentoring, amongst other things, can provide support to people who suffer from bullying, can be a vital way of communicating information, advice and guidance for a range of subjects.

Read more about MBF's involvement in peer mentoring