I first started my Shannon Trust mentor training back in August 2018. It was a conversation with a Shannon Trust mentor at the prison that I decided to undertake the training course to become a mentor.
After my training course was finished, I was assigned to a mentor to shadow them to see how things worked and to get used to the learning materials. Then after a while, I was assigned a mentee and started to help them on their reading journey. Being on the wing, I had a sign on my door to highlight that I was a Shannon Trust mentor, and as a result, I would have people knock my door asking if I could help them, and this was something I got a lot out of helping others to read.
Also, as a Shannon Trust mentor I worked closely with the mentor coordinator who liaised with the education department. They would identify those who needed some extra help with reading so Shannon Trust mentors could play a vital part within the education department.
During my time as a mentor, we held a few events for learners and readers through the library and I gave up my weekends where I satin the library and would be there if anyone needed some extra support
Then in February 2020, a month before COVID-19 hit the entire prison population, I moved to a different prison. As you could imagine, the Shannon Trust reading scheme was ground to a halt in March 2020, but due to the prison changing from a C category prison to a D category prison in the few weeks prior to COVID, I did become a Shannon Trust mentor in the new prison, but I was not as active because of the restrictions in place. I still had a sign on my door and my t-shirt on to show people they could still access help if they needed it.
Two of the main experiences that I obtained while being a mentor was it enabled me to be productive with my time while in custody and help those who could not read to read, and that is the most satisfying results you can have as a mentor.
Secondly, the confidence that being a mentor gave me helped me to complete an undergraduate degree with the Open University, and following my release, I completed a master’s degree in Supply Chain and Logistics Management.
I have a lot to thank Shannon Trust for with helping me on my journey and being able to help others has helped me so much.
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