InSync End Of Year Blog - What I Learned

What I Learned

Working at Ardenleigh was the best crash course in Music Leadership that you could wish for. Working in the mental health sector was a new experience for me, and with the guidance of Chris Tye (Lead Music Leader), I feel that I was encouraged to co-lead with him whenever possible. When working with vulnerable people, you learn to truly listen and not attach your preconceived notions of emotions to a conversation. Being a music leader means to encourage and create an environment for young people to get creative with music, I feel that we successfully created that environment. Being a Music Leader also means being a motivator, young people’s moods fluctuate regularly and at Ardenleigh that experience was heightened. Being a good music leader means knowing when to push someone and when to give them space. We’re here for mental and creative release, if that isn’t happening for whatever reason, being there for that young person becomes your priority.

Challenges I Faced

Working with young people is unpredictable, you cannot expect them to hold their concentration in the same ways that you expect an adult to. This was my biggest learning curve, when you see a young person procrastinating, or dropping a song altogether, it can be sad to see. But when that happens, Chris and I learned ways to motivate or encourage the participants not to give up on their music. These conversations would usually involve some kind of negotiation; ‘how about we start something new and come back to this later and see how you feel’ was a common catchphrase.

Managing social dynamics was tough, particularly in a mostly male environment. One of our young people was a leader amongst the group and we managed to harness that into effectively training him as a music leader. This dynamic did take some managing; unfortunately young people don’t always have the gentle vocabulary that you develop as a youth worker. There’s a fine line between motivating a person to do better, and berating them. This is a line that us as youth workers know how to not cross, but when empowering young people to take leadership roles, that nuance gets lost for them. When parasocial relationships form, you can manage this by giving the two young people separate sessions and empowering them as individuals, rather than feeding into that narrative that they need each other to succeed.

What Surprised Me

The media paints mental health facilities as evil institutions that keep people subservient and profit off of their patients. What I saw could not be more different from that narrative; I met some of the most genuinely kind and committed people at Ardenleigh. The relationships between the staff and the young people would fill you with a sense of purpose, you see the connections they have with these young people and it inspires you to provide the same. Ed (Occupational Therapy Activity Worker) in particular at Ardenleigh was one of the most kind, hardworking and thoughtful people I have ever met and it has changed the narratives surrounding these institutions for me.

What I'm Proud Of

Coming into this role I was not sure that I had what it took to be a Music Leader, I knew that I wanted to be one, but that belief wasn’t there yet. It didn’t take long for Quench and Chris to instill that belief in me. When I think back, it’s some of the proudest work I have ever done. Seeing the development in every young person gave me a sense of purpose that I’ve not felt before. The young people came in shy, apprehensive and unsure of their roles on the programme, and we left with a plethora of great songs and 3 young people that I can see making music for a very long time.

Written by Ross Walter, Plugin Project Young Music Leader, Ardenleigh FCAHMS