Boxer draws on his own background to help youngsters cope with life's challenges
Boxer’s community work leads to a new challenge
Champion boxer Craig Jenkinson is already well-known for his work with youngsters in the Dearne Valley.
He is head coach at the Body Carnegie gym in Bolton upon Dearne and chief executive of a community interest company called Elev8 Journeys.
But now he is moving his work to a new level, having just completed a summer enhancement project in conjunction with Barnsley Council’s Great Childhood Ambitions project.
That work was deemed a success and now he is using Elev8 to launch a new social and emotional training programme, aimed at helping youngsters deal with the mental health issues which have become increasingly dominant problems in society.
The ‘Little Timmy - The Young Champion’s Journey’ programme has been formulated drawing on Craig’s own experiences as a child, where he was affected by many of the factors which cause problems for today’s generation.
The programme is aimed at children in the eight to 13 age bracket, designed to help them understand their emotions, then build resilience and communication skills.
Craig said the benefits for children were that “they stop being prisoners of feelings they can’t explain.
“They gain language, confidence, and the ability to navigate life’s hardest moments.
“They stop exploding, shutting down, and acting out - because they finally have something better to reach for.”
The programme is designed to help parents, by opening up better communication channels with their children.
It is also designed to improve results in school, by transforming the classroom environment through engaging pupils.
Craig said: “Early emotional education is the single most powerful intervention available.
“When children learn to process their feelings you, the ripple effects are felt across families, friendships, schools and communities.”
A potent element of programme is that it has been formulated using Craig’s own childhood experiences, shaping the package to help today’s youngsters avoid the problems and anxieties which affect his formative years.
The programme, he said, offers a service which is unique in this country and could be implemented schools and other pastoral leaders in society.
More information is available at the elev8journeys.com website.