“Luck is what happens when preparation meets opportunity.” Seneca
On Tuesday February 4th almost 170 year 10 students from across the OX14 Learning Partnership gathered at Fitzharrys for InspirEd, an event co-hosted by Fitzharrys School and Radley College. The aim of the event was to empower Year 10 students to shape their futures with confidence and purpose through the innovative 6P model. The conference aimed to inspire, educate, and equip young minds with the tools to navigate an ever-changing world, becoming forward-thinking and socially conscious to seize opportunities and make a positive impact. This aim reflects the conference’s focus on increasing awareness of future planning, introducing the 6P model (Planet, Prosperity, People, Politics, Progress, and Position), and boosting students’ confidence in identifying and preparing for future opportunities. It also captured the conference’s goal of providing practical, actionable knowledge that students can apply in their lives moving forward.
On arrival at Fitzharrys, students were given blue InspirEd T Shirts and a 6 P postcard to provide a focus for the day. The event was launched by a keynote talk from Philip Guest, Founder of Oxford Strategy and a futurist who designed the 6P model as a way of anticipating change and preparing for it.
Next up it was Rose Martin, from Radley who had the unenviable task of getting 170 teenagers to sing, but through skill and persuasion the whole hall was chanting a song about seizing opportunities which was very appropriate for the event.
Feeling fully energised students were split into 6 groups and then attended 2 talks based on one of the 6 P’s. These talks included creating positive tipping points for climate change (Planet), getting the most out of Prosperity in society (Prosperity), how to work with and get the best out of technology in an organisation (Progress), exploring the role media, news and influencers play in creating opportunity (Power), how to position your organisation to create opportunities (Position), how understanding people can widen inclusivity and participation (People). For each talk students collected a sticker and then they networked with other students to find out what they had learnt to earn more stickers. Finally they gathered in the hall to reflect on the morning and to embed the 6P view of the world and their place in it. This amazing event showcased the importance of getting schools, students and stakeholders working together to learn and create opportunities.
