TEAMWORK TRIUMPHS!

Last Wednesday saw a faithful band of SATRO volunteers head to The Park SEN School in Woking to help support and guide 34 Years 10 & 11 students through the vagaries of the SATRO Business Game. The students were placed into six teams which later became stationery companies and each team had their own SATRO Business Advisor. Teachers were on hand to play the various roles inherent in business with ‘the buying team’ negotiating hard with the students, many of whom refused to compromise. Bank accounts were opened and money managed whilst ‘the bosses’ kept everyone on track.

The pupils had varying degrees of learning difficulties ranging from moderate to severe but all were engaged from the start.

As one teacher remarked, "there was a real buzz in the hall and it was good to see the students working with others they haven’t worked with before. The game gave them an overview of a real company, and real life – on work experience they only see the area they are working on and may not understand how their part fits into the whole-a truly valuable life experience."

For the SATRO Volunteers, and indeed the Game Manager, it was one of the most rewarding mornings with everyone being impressed by the students’ eagerness to learn and take part.

As one of them observed, “what I thought was particularly good about my team was that everyone was involved and wanted to contribute and support each other regardless of ability.”

 The event was funded by a generous donation from Councillor Liz Bowes.