My mentee is shy. In a room of young people just like him his voice drowns. In fact he doesn’t contribute at all. He says he prefers to let the other kids lead – they know more than he does.

During a game of chess, he comes out of his shell. His knight corners my queen just as I sacrificed my bishop to lure his king. It’s checkmate. This is the third time he’s beaten me since we’ve started to play a few weeks ago. We high five in a rush of emotion. He does a quick sprint around his chair and another little dance. Winning puts a sparkle in his eye.

In each game he uses a different strategy to manipulate my army and gain my surrender.  He gets it. There is more than one way to reach your goal.

Would you like to spend one hour a week making a difference in the life of a young person? Request an application form for the SAYes Youth mentoring programme on our home page. This year we will be trialling a remote mentoring programme until it’s safe to meet in person again.