Speaker our RYLA candidate Josh Chima

Josh was supported by his mother Ms Clementine Chima, the two people who mentored him on the course Rotarian Lucy Hodgson (The RYLA course director), Rotarian Derek Housely from the Rotary Club of Stainborough and Andrew Parker his Boys Brigade leader. Josh was one of the candidates interviewed from the Boys Brigade and Girls Brigade based at Sunbridge Road Mission in Bradford.

Josh told us that before going on RYLA he was just finishing the first year in the sixth form at St. Benedicts School which is the six form college for St. Bedes School. He was interested in music, wanted to enter law as a career and had been elected as Head Boy for the upcoming second year in the sixth form.

On studying the RYLA information before going he had read not to take a mobile phone as there is no signal at Hebden Hey (which he did take), don't take nice clothes (which he did take), take insect repellent (which he now knows why), this is an "experiential learning" (what does this mean he thought). All of this left him feeling very nervous.

He then gave us an overview of some of the tasks that he faced: -

Day 1 This is the day of "Icebreakers" which get people to know one another. One task was to lie side by side in a long line and then the end person had to roll over everybody else until everybody had taken their turn at rolling. Also, he had to have a mask made by other participants coating his face in Plaster of Paris. Both these left him feeling that he lacked his own personal space.

Day 2 started off with him having to draw on the outside of his mask what he thought people saw of him and on the inside what he felt he was really like. Then he had to lead a team of 8 including himself in a task to build and sail in a coracle using plastic piping, sheeting and string. Then he as leader had to sail across the river in the coracle. He fell in the water many times. From this task he felt that he learnt about leadership, self preparation and perseverance.

Day 3 This was the day for the mountain rescue where the team of 8 led by somebody else had to search for a pretend victim. Then when they had found the person get the team, who had been split up, to the right location to carry the victim to safety. From this task he learnt communication, planning, organising and self management.

Day 4 Today was the Murder Hunt. Usually there were 2 tasks per day, but this was such a large task that it took all day. By following various timed tasks, the team had to solve what had occurred in the murder. The learning from this was problem solving, delegation and time management.

Day 5 This was raft race day where the team had to build a raft from 2 barrels and then use it to get all the team across the canal. Lucy said that Josh's team were one of only 2 teams in all her time as course director (since 2012) to get all the team across in the allowed time. His learning from this was mainly adaptability because after Josh leading the team to build the raft, he was then moved to a different team to actually sail the raft.

Since RYLA he has now moved up into the second year of sixth form and has been doing some legal work experience and has got an interview at Oxford University among others. He believes that course has helped him with his Head Boy duties, increased his self confidence and enabled him to get better at networking. He has been involved in several charity fund raising events since completing the course and has already been able to pay more than the cost of the course into various charities.