As you are probably aware, some of our students (and their teacher, Dean Jones) performed as the Minsthorpe Soul Band at a Go Higher West Yorkshire funded event, at Headingley Stadium, Leeds on Wednesday of last week. The event was to highlight some of the events/activities that young people, who are in GHWY postcode areas (which tend to have low rates of progression to University) have taken part in over the past year. The Soul Band originally performed and wowed, at the ‘Access All Areas’ event that took place at the Backstage Academy, South Kirby, earlier this year. The Band was so well received, that they were asked to perform at the event this week, as the headline act, both opening and closing the Event, with 2 further performances during the Event.
If you have seen/heard the Band perform, you will know what an amazingly talented group of young people make up this Band. On Wednesday the accompanying staff lost count of the number of people who approached them to speak about the ‘amazing’, ‘awesome’, ‘talented’, ‘fantastic’ (to name just a few adjectives used) students who performed. The students themselves were an absolute credit to Minsthorpe, their families and themselves. They were courteous, polite and their behaviour was impeccable throughout the day. As a group, the older students are perfect peer mentors, especially to the two youngest members of the Band, who have themselves integrated in to the Band, with seemingly effortless ease. They all obviously have a fantastic relationship with Dean Jones, who also performed with the band and who gives up so much of his time, to support these young people and nurture their incredible talents.
The students who make up the Band are: Neve, Alister, Ella, James, Matthew, Lucy, Abi, Terry and Ryan.
The College offers special thanks to Dean Jones for all his time in helping make this a truly memorable event.
