The staff really enjoyed the training and were inspired by Kim, she was full of energy and had frequent, short brain gym exercise for everyone to follow, which kept us all alert and motivated. Her presentation and delivery was impeccable and really informative, we all gained a good insight into how to make mind maps a key tool for learning in different areas of the curriculum.

The course was just the right balance of useful information, fun games and great ideas that can be implemented in the classroom. Most importantly it helped all of us to think about how resilient we really are and what we can do to look after our own mental health. Everyone loved Rachel and found her extremely engaging and inspiring. We could feel her passion for what she was doing and it inspired most of us to take serious action to start taking better care of our mental health and wellbeing. After all, how can we look after our students mental health if we don’t know how to look after our own. We will be looking into how we can make use of the Big Top model with the children.

Pitched at exactly the right level for our students. The speaker was very adaptable and appeared very organised right from the start. A great presenter! A+ 9/10

We were very pleased with the event and we felt that our students did benefit from this.

Great pace and very informative, Natalie works extremely well with the girls and gets the very best out of them. Fab! 10/10

Last week we had a great day with Shenaz around Resilience. It was superb for both pupils and staff. We will certainly be booking future sessions and have several actions to pursue, leading from the work done with Shenaz.

Our year 8 students had a workshop with Natalie today. The year 8's thoroughly enjoyed the workshop as did our staff! Natalie was fantastic, she had the attention of our students all the way through. We are not sure where she gets her energy.

Natalie was a superb presenter, delivering both workshops with genuine enthusiasm. She pitched both workshops perfectly to the different age groups (Year 8 and Year 10) and the interactive format kept all the girls engaged throughout. Thank you. To quote an email from a parent in an email already received the day after the workshop: “[She] came home more resilient! [She] said the resilience session and presenter were “captivating.”” (Year 8 parent from Resilience workshop)

Course was well run and well-resourced and the message was clearly delivered to the children. Leader was lovely and very approachable, really engaged the children and helped them to easily understand a challenging topic.

The children were engaged for the whole session, we found the meditation and writing lists of ‘how to be more grown up’ the most useful and hope by using these in school and at home that they will have an impact. Rachel was brilliant, the children were really engaged and this morning were still talking about the workshop. Some children even asked their parents to write down things they have had a go at on their own at home to show their teacher. Thank you!

The workshops were fantastic. Steve is a brilliant presenter and worked really well with the learners. College learners can be a tough crowd and he managed them wonderfully keeping them engaged and feeling part of the event. Everything ran smoothly and was even better than expected; very professional and worth every penny. 10/10

Kim, forgive me for not writing to you to thank you on Friday. We wanted to say a huge thank you for the wonderful workshops you did – they made a big impact on staff and boys – and parents – and have given us a lot to think about and discuss in lessons. Thank you again for your huge effort, hard work and for sending through the power points.

The boys in each session were very enthused – the age range was from 7 – 13. Kim did really well adapting the two sessions to each age group – but each time the messages were equally clear and strong. The power point was excellent and backed up visually what Kim was saying – staff and boys have been talking about some of the points that came up, partly because the visuals were so strong and have helped us remember the content.

A good balance between Kim talking and getting the boys to participate – each session went quickly and enjoyably. Kim was in complete control of her content and audience. The parents at the last session were also engaged and enthused and Kim did well to pack the information into a tight 45 minute slot.

The sessions tied in very well to topics we have begun to explore in school – mindfulness, resilience. Having Kim gave us different angles to think about eg What does success look like? What are the chemical reactions that go on in the brain and influence our mood? Keep a bedtime diary of positive things to keep the “good” hormones in the front of your mind while you sleep. So lots of good ideas there for us.

The workshop was really informative and engaging. Age appropriate considering challenging things discussed. The children surprised themselves with the amount of information they retained. Interesting to open conversations for children to speak open and honestly about themselves. Where some of our children struggle to sit for long periods of time there could be a few more opportunities for the pupils to move around. Really informative, children were able to reflect upon themselves and teachers found it thought provoking. Easy to set up and well organised. 10/10

The day was really informative and engaging. Staff feedback is overwhelmingly positive with everyone taking away action points and ideas to carry out both within their classroom and personally. Natalie’s presentation style was a good mix of seriousness balanced with upbeat, informal anecdotes and great ideas. The information within the course made us think more deeply about our own mental health and well being as well as the impact on, and signs for, young people’s mental health. Many staff have already implemented some of the ideas with their classes.

It was lovely to meet you on Thursday. Thank you for the fabulous sessions you ran. The informal feedback I have had has been entirely positive, with requests for you to return again in the future. "The best CPD session we have had in years" was one quote. I will get wider feedback after the Easter break and come back to you with further at this time. I really appreciate that you took the extra time to travel to Suffolk New College, as were the teams that had met you on previous visits.

As always, the workshops catered perfectly to the needs of our students. The resilience strategies were accessible by all students and will be re-inforced during the tutor group sessions throughout the year. Our students were engaged throughout and the skill of the presenter meant that the sessions were very subtly adapted depending on differences in the audience participation – ie. If students indicated they were on a Uni progression pathway, the guidance was ever so slightly different to those on an apprenticeship or employment pathway. The information shared was backed up with research which enabled our students to ‘believe’ in the guidance and this was a key point for us, the strategies were not only ‘common sense’ they also had a robust grounding in Neuro-science and Psychology research. Our students are a tough audience and they responded to the academic insight which our trainer provided. As this was the 2nd time we have used Positively Mad, we believe it was really beneficial to have Shenaz once again, as she was familiar with the setting and the academic ‘context’ of the college. She knew the structure of the pastoral team and this enabled her to connect with the students as someone who ‘got’ where they were coming from. Also, as she has a spookily good memory, she even recognised students from the sessions last year who were not even in her workshops and this was a really positive experience for them. The equipment and room set-up was not overly disruptive and the whole 3 days went without a hitch. 10/10

Kim is a fantastic trainer and can really manage the crowd. The Year 11 course was spot on and student feedback has been positive. Staff are keen to use the ideas they witnessed too.

Students found it informative and beneficial, it was delivered well with a clear message. On time, arrival set up easy and engaged the students

An excellently run course, Kim was very enthusiastic. She was very strong,but fair with some of our students which was good. I believe the timing of the course was well placed, as the pupils are just to start their GCSE courses.

The Resilience INSET Day was an excellent course and staff were energized and motivated by the training. Kim was a first rate trainer who judged the mood of the staff well and ensured that the day met their needs. The resources provided were spot on and supported Kim’s delivery well. I would not hesitate to recommend this training to anyone. The day was well organized and passed really quickly. Momentum was kept up throughout the day and I can honestly say staff enjoyed every minute.

ROAD TO RESILIENCE PACKAGE: In terms of the staff CPD staff felt that the sessions were informative and expertly delivered, one staff member said that it was the best CPD that they have had in 25 years of teaching. Staff did feel that the CPD could have been condensed from 4 hours to 3. In terms of the parental twilight, the session was very useful for parents and really helped parents to think about how to support their child with their level 3 studies. The student sessions helped us to embed our ethos of growth mindset and resilience to all our students and also taught them specific skills that will help them to cope throughout their time at college, but these students will also now have these skills for life. Shenaz was so enthusiastic and this was infectious, she was fantastic with staff, students and parents and we would recommend this session unreservedly to others.

The workshop was informative, giving accessible knowledge and strategies to all our staff. The workshop was on Monday and by Tuesday, many staff were commenting on ideas and strategies they would personally be using and those they’d be sharing and supporting our children with. For what could be a sensitive topic, Shenaz presented the material in a clear and understandable way. Shenaz ensured the day would be successful by getting to know the school and its requirements, prior to arriving. Shenaz quickly gets to know people and puts them at ease, which then allows for open discussion; Shenaz is a great ambassador for Positively MAD. Please pass on our thanks.

Shenaz was engaging, non-stop, pacey and really bought into what our students needed. She was very impressive indeed. The principles of developing greater resilience for our students was well presented. 10/10

Brilliantly delivered by Nat Dee. Her engagement with all of her audiences was exceptional and she was able to alter her tone and level of delivery according to her audience. Her energy was brilliant. My colleague commented on what a lovely person she was and we have also had good anecdotal feedback.

• Information was well suited to age group and there was good variation of tasks and stimuli • Content was relevant and interesting • Messages were very positive about how to deal with tough situations, how to be respectful and determined through life • Pupils were engaged for the whole period, listening and participating in equal measure. This was particularly highlighted when pupils were taught how to count to 10 in Japenese – whole cohort were out of their seats and taking part • Presenter was very engaging, funny and used lots of personal experiences to put points across • Presenter interacted well with pupils and the pupils responded well to her • Presenter was enthusiastic and positive • Pupils were engaged and responded well • Shenaz was a high energy, inspirational person who appeared to get the pupils fully engaged in activities. She made learning easy and enjoyable an I’m sure was contributing to pupils’ positive approach • Shenaz had a great rapport with the pupils and they responded well to her

Both courses were very intensive, detailed with lots of good strategies to help combat anxiety, develop resilience and to introduce different methods of revising. 2 very good enjoyable sessions. The Upper 6 in particular enjoyed Rachel’s workshop and felt she communicated very well with the girls