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Tom Pocock, an executive advisor at a research and advisory company, first discovered Yes Futures from a colleague who previously had volunteered with us. He was drawn to Yes Futures because of the opportunity to work with young people at a very formative stage of their development. Tom has now been a coach with Yes Futures for the past three years!
“In my spare time I like to play football, tennis, golf, and I am an avid Arsenal fan.”
The receptiveness of the students in our programmes is what surprised Tom the most.
“What’s surprised me the most about working with Yes Futures is the receptiveness of the young people that go through the programme have- although many will start of skeptical of your motives and reasoning for wanting to work with them”
A specific moment Tom highlights is when one of the students found out the coaches were volunteers. The student asked Tom, “”Well why would you do it then?” Tom then discusses how the students learn very quickly to appreciate the time you are able to spend with them.
What Tom wished people knew about Yes Futures is that even just a few coaching sessions with these young people and being able to spend time with them one to one, you can see a huge difference in confidence and communication skills.
“I’ve had several young people come to the following session really excited to tell me about what they’d tried to apply from what we’d spoken about the previous time, and eager to set themselves a future goal from the present session”
Tom really enjoyed meeting and working with the other coaches. He learned something from all the other coaches with their different skill sets and backgrounds.
“On top of all this, the opportunity to work with and see the impact you’re having on young people at a very early stage in their lives is amazing. Knowing that you’re setting them up with skills that they will use for the rest of their lives is an incredible opportunity, and one that I would have not had without Yes Futures!”
Tom is an extremely talented coach and has helped out on the programme for the past three years. He was recently the recipient of a Team London Award. Team London Awards are given to those who make outstanding contributions to their community and help to make London the best city it can be. We are so proud of one of our coaches receiving this honor and continue to be amazed by his coaching talents!
