A McPin YPAG member joined the team at the Xcluded film launch for the PAC project. They share their reflections below.
Jummy
I was invited to the Xcluded film launch as a Young People’s Advisory Group (YPAG) member for The McPin Foundation.
The film launch was amazing from beginning to end and I was truly touched and inspired by the young people who made Xcluded happen, from peer researchers to changemakers, and the words used to convey and bring to life the Xcluded film.
The Xcluded film project puts young people who are at the centre and have lived experience of youth violence at the forefront of solutions, who can then use their experience to reduce youth violence.
I personally feel that it’s important that young people can inform and shape research on issues in society that they are affected by, and communicate their findings to wider society and government and policy makers; the peer researchers and changemakers demonstrate why this is important as active leaders of their generations and community.
There can be a disconnect with the government with the real issue of youth violence, and what is the real problem, and what is happening on a ground-level.
Additionally, there can be a disconnect with the government with the real issue of youth violence, and what is the real problem, and what is happening on a ground-level.
An example that was mentioned at the event is with adolescence, which the Prime Minister automatically said that it should be shown in schools which is a very specific example of youth violence through a White lens and is not fully reflective of youth violence; Xcluded should be shown in schools instead as more accurate depiction of youth violence.
Moreover, a comment that resonated with me from the event is that often when it comes to youth violence we focus on the negative and forget young people that are doing positive things in their community such as the peer researchers and changemakers.
This is important as not all young people are involved in or at risk of youth violence, there are actually young people who are positively involved in addressing youth violence.
A key message from the event is that young people don’t just wake up one day and become involved in youth violence, there are so many contributing factors and causes, such as school exclusion that puts young people at risk, due to a higher likelihood of encountering bad influences.
The event also made me reflect on my own experiences of school exclusion, in which I was wrongfully expelled from school on mental health grounds.
The event also made me reflect on my own experiences of school exclusion, in which I was wrongfully expelled from school on mental health grounds.
At the event, through the speakers and young people and their “A ‘Better’ Exclusion Journey” pathway I realised that there are internal factors that can affect young people’s behaviour such as mental health and home life – schools tend to ‘penalise the outburst’ without ‘understanding the inburst’ as Andrew Fuller stated.
I am now more aware of the lack of holistic support in schools, that nourishes and equips young people with skills to manage their emotional health and wellbeing and a lack of schools understanding the factors leading to poor behaviour.
If schools understood these factors, including bullying, mental health, home life, they could provide holistic support that can young prevent young people from getting involved in youth violence and from being excluded. The pathway also highlights how the exclusion process should be and how it can be prevented.
I left the event, reflective of my experiences and what support could have been helpful at the time, and how the school didn’t understand what was happening internally for me at the time or provided alternatives or support during exclusion.
The soundtracks, the visuals and young people and other characters in the film did a great job in conveying issues surrounding youth violence and school exclusion.
I will end on the spectacular film that takes us on an interactive journey with different scenarios of what could happen to Heaven, who navigates education, family life and different life choices and was excluded from school.
I was very engrossed in the film which was over before I knew it. The soundtracks, the visuals and young people and other characters in the film did a great job in conveying issues surrounding youth violence and school exclusion.
I didn’t want the film to end and was surprised that it came to an end so quickly. I knew straight away I wanted more, including a part two or even more.
Watch the Xcluded trailer here:
If you would like to organise a screening of Xcluded or invite the team to deliver a workshop in your school or youth facility please get in touch.
Want to read the research that informed the film? Check out the research report and the short research report.
About the Peer Action Collective
The London PAC partnership between The Peace Alliance and McPin has provided the scaffolding for young people to explore how school exclusions relate to youth violence, and to look for solutions. The McPin team has led on peer research, with the Peace Alliance working on community engagement and social action.
The Peer Action Collective (PAC) is a £12.7 million programme, which aims to give young people the chance to make their communities safer, fairer places to live. It is funded by the Youth Endowment Fund, the #iwill Fund (a joint investment between The National Lottery Community Fund and the Department for Culture, Media and Sport) and the Co-op Group.
Read more about it on our PAC project page.
