A new course from ŠKODA is giving young adults a chance to explore their creativity, voice their feelings and expand their skills
Once home to countless giants of broadcasting, Manchester’s Granada Studios is now a training ground for a new generation. Though the telly sets are long gone, it remains the home of Reform Radio, an online station that also acts as an incubator for young people interested in a career on the airwaves.
And if getting ahead in creative industries means subverting expectations, it’s clear the latest batch of students are off to a good start. Huddled around mixing desks and microphones, the show they’re workshopping is called The Lazy Zombies’ Guide to Youth – a sardonic riff on the perceived lack of motivation and creative energy often attributed to the digital generation.
They arrived on Monday with little to no relevant experience; by the end of the week they’ll produce and present the show to a gathered audience of friends and family. A project from ŠKODA in partnership with The Prince’s Trust as part of the former’s Driver’s Seat Initiative – which aims to celebrate independently minded people who want to make a positive difference to the world – it’s open to 16-25-year-olds who are not in education or employment. That’s a fairly broad window of eligibility, so what drives participants to get involved?
For Rhys Forteau, 19, it’s about generating a creative spark. “I think that doing something creative helps you understand yourself a bit better – you find new sides to yourself, and that gives you more motivation,” he says. “My mum wanted me to be a care assistant. I did a bit of training and I enjoyed it at first, but it’s not something I could see myself doing in five years’ time. This course has shown me I can make my own opportunities, not just follow in others’ footsteps.”
Along with independent thought, another trait in no short supply among the group is tenacity. Jacob Bowen and Sophie Heng-Travis, both 24, have worked in a number of jobs since graduating with qualifications in creative fields, though both feel they have yet to realise their full potential. For them, the course is an opportunity to widen their skillsets and meet similarly ambitious people.
“For me it’s about building my toolkit,” says theatre graduate Bowen. “It’s alright doing filler jobs for a while, but I graduated three years ago. It gets a bit tedious.”
Writer and poet Heng-Travis agrees, and suggests it’s a lack of persistence that leads to a lot of young people falling short of achieving their dreams. “I think for some people our age, it’s sad that you have to settle and just do something that’s not what you want to do. But you have to make money and be part of the system, which can mean doing something that’s mediocre. That’s what I find frustrating. But you’ve got to be persistent, you’ve got to keep going.”
Course tutor Adam Seymour
Course tutor Adam Seymour has not only seen the effect the course has had on countless young people – he’s also a living, breathing testament to the power of training to change lives. He took a similar course himself as a student two years ago, at a time when mental health issues had been holding him back. “I didn’t have a lot of confidence in my own abilities,” says Seymour. “I needed a bit of a boost, a safe space, I needed people around me who were in the same boat, because sometimes when you’re suffering with anxiety and depression and other wellbeing issues, it’s hard to reach out to people.”
Seymour’s experience suggests it’s not simply individual qualities, but rather a joint mentality of determination, and a willingness to collaborate, that’s the key to making the most of a course like this. Bowen agrees: “Having a platform where we can use that fire in our belly, from all the things that are going on with today’s youth, is massively, massively important. It’s about getting together with a few different people from different backgrounds, being on a level playing field and having something to say.”
To find out more about ŠKODA’s Driver’s Seat Initiative visit skoda.co.uk/dsi
