Callum Slater, 16, of John Ruskin School, Coniston, is taking part in the National Citizen Service. Read about his adventures on the social action project here through his blog.

A look back at NCS Week Two

AFTER a much needed weekend of recuperating and hot baths, Monday brought the beginning of my NCS week two adventure.

I arrived late because of an Applicants Day at Barrow Sixth Form College but I definitely appreciated being greeted back on Monday evening by culinary chaos – it was dinner time!

Enough rice was cooked to feed a healthy portion of Cumbria… and enough curry to feed, well not many. Let’s hope that my attempt at fajitas works better.

Now picture this; a youth hostel, hidden in a secluded valley of Coniston: spidery branches hanging heavily above the ground. We’re sat in the cold basement. What could be more inviting?

A power cut.

Plunged into darkness and locked tightly to each other we sat – and screamed – in anticipation. Fortunately, after our minor fright experience, the lights came quickly back on and we carried on watching 22 Jump Street and having a good laugh as a team.

Day two was filled with interesting talks on the local environment and relevant issues. We learnt about the harmful effects of New Psychoactive Substances (legal highs) and then set off to Yew Tree Farm where we spoke to the National Trust, learnt about Herdwick sheep and got to see local craftspeople at work.

I’m glad to report, that evening, the fajitas… were… fit. In the words of Sam Leitch – ‘I never knew my Mum was this bad of a cook until now.’ Fuelled on fajita sauce and soured cream we wondered up to the mountain rescue base to see just how amazingly trained a dog can

be.

How do you end the day as a team in a Youth Hostel?

A campfire.

Wednesday brought a trip to the University of Cumbria campus in Ambleside. To raise our awareness on financing and handling money we tried to live six weeks as a Peruvian family, struggling to make ends meet with pressured trainer businesses, high interest loans and

stubborn debt collectors!

Meet Uncle Gomez, one member of the Gomez family designing and trading trainers to put bread on the table. The Gomez family may have resorted to some crime to achieve our final 1000 intis but sure enough we all survived the six weeks.

After this, we discussed living in a university and student loans which personally opened my eyes to new possibilities at university. For our final challenge of the day we invaded Ambleside to try and get selfies with everything from A to Z; these included Linda from

Linda’s B&B, an England supporter called Gary, and of course… a Yoghurt.

The thing I am realising most about NCS is that there is just SO much to learn about the local community. The interesting speakers keep coming, always with something new and yet equally engaging to say. We discussed democracy with the Cumbria Youth Alliance and thought about where our food comes from with CDEC to help spread the word about

their new ‘Map Your Meal’ project.

To really finish off week two we went back up to the campfire to enjoy a delicious BBQ, played games and started to reflect on our last two weeks on NCS.

We were given time to review and reflect on our experiences but it also marked the official end of my NCS time with many, many newly treasured team mates as the third week happens in a smaller group.

It’ll be a shame to say goodbye to some of these great people and I hope to see all of them at graduation (October 8).

Thank you NCS week two, I’ll see you next week.