Bringing STEP to life: How these skills play out in practice
“Mum, go to work. Me and my brothers will take care of our younger sister and take her to school. Don’t worry about it.”
Alison shared this powerful story about her three boys, ages 12, 13, and 15 – young men who have grown up supported by their Greenhouse Coach-Mentor.
Alison was close to turning down a full-time role to look after her youngest daughter, aged only six. However, Alison’s boys wanted their mother to chase her ambitions, and worked together to care for their youngest sibling, taking her to and from school. This is all alongside their ongoing commitments to morning training, school assignments, and after-school training at their Greenhouse programme. Their courage and determination gave their mum the freedom to pursue her career goals.
Alison didn’t just see this as a practical solution. To her, it was proof of the young men her boys were becoming – responsible, thoughtful, and emotionally mature. And she credited a huge part of that growth to the role their Coach-Mentor had played in their lives for years.
This moment defined our recent event, STEP Back to School – bringing to life what we do, by hearing from those who experience it daily.
Attendees were transported back to the school halls and experienced Greenhouse’s STEP framework in action. STEP covers social, thinking, emotional, and physical pillars that contribute to positive youth development. They equip young people with the skills, confidence, and resilience needed to thrive – in school, their communities, and life.
Attendees split into two groups to have a walk-through (or a STEP-through?) of STEP in action.
Two Greenhouse coaches – Coach-Mentors Laura and Tom – put attendees through their paces in the Physical session! Capture the Flag had guests moving and activated their competitive streaks. One guest said: “I wasn’t quite expecting to be running around a gym court, but if I’m completely honest, I didn’t want it to end!”
Simultaneously, they showcased how the physical pillar ties in learning points for our young people, showing how skills used during the game – agility, coordination, and concentration – translate to the classroom. Another guest said: “The sport part was really instructive – very helpful to understand how even the simplest of games can relate to real-life skills.”
The Social and Thinking session saw guests engaging in a fireside chat with Coach Dom, Seun (who works for Greenhouse and was once a Greenhouse participant himself), Aisha and Salma, two Year 10 students in Coach Dom’s programme, and Alison’s boys, also under Coach Dom.
The session dived into the Social and Thinking pillars, brought to life by real-life examples from the rest of the panel on how those skills have shown up for them.
Seun spoke on how Coach Maria saw leadership skills in him that he didn’t yet see in himself, and how she was able to cultivate them to allow him to become a leader in many other aspects of his life.
Echoing Seun’s points, Salma described how Coach Dom’s guidance, putting her in leadership positions, allowed her to become a leader both on- and off-court, becoming a school prefect. Beaming with pride, Aisha shared her journey from where she started, to now being the captain of her U16s basketball team outside of her Greenhouse programme.
Here is where Alison shared how her boys’ coach has impacted her family’s life, and the impressive young men they are growing into, having been shaped by basketball and their Greenhouse Coach-Mentor.
Guests felt it. Many said the mother’s story was “a tear-jerker” and was “incredibly powerful”. One attendee said: “The pupils (and the mother!) just blew me away”, with another sharing: “I loved that you had a parent there as well as the 2 incredible girls who were so eloquent and the ex-pupil too.”
The event was brought to a close by Alyssa, a young person who has been coached in volleyball by Coach Lulama for the last five years. Alyssa spoke of the growth, development, and how the power of sport and mentoring from Coach Lulama helped her become the confident, self-assured young woman who stood in front of everyone.
Feedback from the event was wonderful, but two guests kept it short and sweet:
“More of this.”
“Best charity event.”
These events serve the purpose of giving people a deeper insight into the transformational work that goes on behind the scenes at Greenhouse. There is value in knowing what we do, but there is deeper value in seeing what we do first-hand, and hearing accounts from current participants, ex-participants, coaches, and even parents on the magic of Greenhouse.