A new and exciting programme is taking shape as part of our pastoral care development. The first steps to implement it have been made during the end of the Project Based Learning week in February. Working closely with Annemarie Oomes, Peer Supporter Coordinator from UWC Maastricht, who came to RCN along with two of her student peer supporters, Aurianne and Alejo, we organised a weekend training session for the selected 1st and 2nd year Safety Net Listeners. During the training we looked at many different aspects of what the role of a peer supporter consists of and how to do it well. Based on the training on the UWC Maastricht training manual, the students were introduced to the 5 levels of communication, selective listening, active listening, micro skills, and much more. This has been a very exciting first step for the Safety Net Listener programme, as well as creating a collaborative platform with the two Colleges, Maastricht and RCN. The programme will complement our existing residential and pastoral structures.
