North Notts College host week of guest speakers to inspire students

North Notts College, alongside its partners in RNN group, organised its first Inspire Week with five guest talks from experts in fields such as mental health, ambition, and positivity.

The talks are part of the group's scheme to help students believe in themselves and seek greater career opportunities.

Over the week, speakers included psychologist Martin Burder; author and England Men’s U15 mental conditioning coach Steve Sallis; mental health advocate Oliver Newton who spoke about his battles with OCD; former professional footballer Luke Staton who inspired students with his resilience after he experienced a career-ending injury; and Leonie Lightfoot who taught about the importance of understanding your own mind.

Students have also been given the opportunity to work in one-on-one sessions with the guest speakers over the next four weeks.

The college said the Inspire Week was well received by students and staff.

Ritchie Houghton, a Level 3 Public Service student, said: “The talks throughout the week have been inspirational.

“The speakers have covered matters that I can relate to and I feel like I can use the tools they spoke about.”

Jayce-Leigh Taylor, a Level 2 Childcare student, also commented on the value of the talks.

She said: “I’ve learned a lot from the talk.

“Even If you don’t end up going down your planned path, there’s always another path, and it’s made me start to think that if you put in the hard work and really try then you can achieve something amazing.”