Rainhill High School

During the week commencing July 1st 2024, two of our members delivered Assemblies to all year groups at Rainhill High School in Merseyside, and followed these up with a half day Inset session to all teachers and staff. Feedback from the school has been exceptionally positive. HSA is the ONLY organisation providing this type of package, which involves detailed course materials which can be tailored, as necessary,  to the specific location/context of a school and to any age group and which are delivered by survivors themselves. Below is an extract from the comments made by Rainhill High School following the sessions.

"This week we welcomed Steve and Dave from the Hillsborough Survivors Support Alliance to deliver assemblies and staff training about the context and aftermath of the Hillsborough Disaster.

Many people in our wider school community and surrounding area have been, and continue to be, affected by the Hillsborough Disaster. It is therefore vitally important our students understand what occurred in 1989 and what happened in the aftermath of the tragedy.

The main aim of the assembly for students was to provide the opportunity, via a case study of the Hillsborough Disaster, for our pupils to explore the PHSE themes of Empathy, Social Justice and Mental Health. This will include:

•What they understand by Social Justice, especially in light of the immediate aftermath of the disaster and the subsequent 30-year campaign by the victims’ families, and the survivors for what they termed “Truth and Justice”.

•Develop our pupils’ ability to empathise with others by exploring the prejudices and common misconceptions surrounding the disaster, and the effects they have had upon the survivors and the victims’ families.

•Explore the issues around Mental Health with reference to the impact of the disaster on the Mental Health of Survivors, and the stigma attached to mental health issues by society.

The feedback from students and staff has been universally positive and we are extremely grateful to Steve, Dave and the entire education team at the HSA for their excellent assemblies and CPD sessions"

The sessions were successfully delivered to 1200 Pupils and staff training was provided to over 100 teachers and support staff.  Here are some of the quotations from pupils and staff from the sessions:

• "I never knew the details of actually what happened at Hillsborough but Steve and Dave taught us the truth" Year 7 student

• "My grandad was at Hillsborough and still has nightmares now about it. I think it is important that everyone understands what happened and how it affects people" Year 8 student

• "Brilliant session all round and staff feedback has been incredible, very powerful" Teacher

• "Can you pass on my thanks to Steve and Dave, their CPD session today was one of the best CPD sessions I've ever had. Such knowledgeable and thoughtful people" Teacher