We connect young people facing barriers with inspiring mentors
We connect young people facing barriers with inspiring mentors
All young people deserve equal opportunities
Our mentors share their experience and insights, giving young people a different perspective from home or school. Our mission is to connect more young people with inspiring role models to help them make confident and informed decisions about their future.
EXPERIENCE
We’ve been engaging young people with digital mentoring for almost twenty years
TECHNOLOGY
We use a bespoke, constantly evolving platform that puts safeguarding at its core
REACH
Our platform has provided 150,000 young people so far with a high-quality mentoring experience
Mentee stories
Simran’s story
I always wonder whether I’d be thinking or feeling the same about university if there wasn’t a pandemic. I completely lost that in-person interaction and was struggling with the UCAS application because of it. But then, if there hadn’t been the pandemic, I wouldn’t have been able to do the virtual work experience and use the Brightside platform.
Daniel’s story
I only had a vague idea of what I wanted to do after GCSE and I had no idea where to start. I was interested in aviation, zoology and conservation but after that I was lost. I didn’t know if you needed a degree or an apprenticeship and I wasn’t sure which path to choose. Mentoring was a very useful tool to help with this; it gave me a push to start looking at new things.
Rano’s story
I knew I wanted to be a lawyer but I was concerned about the workload. My mentor was a working lawyer, so not only gave me advice about my UCAS application and interview questions, but also reassured me that you don’t need to overwork yourself to be successful. He told me about his personal experience of finding balance and saying no, and reminded me how important enjoying your free time is.
We turned to Brightside because they’re well known in the mentoring field for their online intervention. With their strong focus on safeguarding and their platform’s content library of study skills, they were exactly what we were looking for.
Education Liaison and Outreach Manager at Middlesex University
I found mentoring to be a positive experience: it made me feel more confident and it was really rewarding. I loved feeling like I was making a difference.
Laura, Mentor
I’d recommend mentoring to anyone: I’ve already got my brother involved. Sharing your knowledge can make a big impact on a person’s life.
Olivia, Mentor
I had a great experience on this project. I thought the Brightside platform was very, very good for an online mentoring experience. I expected it to be a bit dry but it wasn’t; you could access it on the phone or the mac and it was all seamless.
Steve, Mentor
The Brightside team are amazing. Any time we had questions or concerns, they were so supportive.
Deputy Head of Widening Participation at the University of Cambridge
Anyone thinking of mentoring should absolutely go for it; I was worried I wouldn’t have a lot to offer but you always have more to offer than you think. It isn’t about knowing all the answers, it’s about being a sounding board and coming up with a solution together. The impact you can have on someone’s life is huge.
Eleanor, mentor
News and events
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