Across all three stages of the KEY+ Challenge, the group discovered the power of resilience, confidence and teamwork, finishing their KEY+ journey by making a resource that could continue supporting the wellbeing of others long into the future.
Their journey began with a trip to Adventure Sunderland, where they explored the benefits of spending time outdoors and began thinking about how nature could support mental health and wellbeing. Inspired by the experience, they progressed to Stage 2, organising an overnight stay near Dalby Forest to research forest wellbeing trails and gather ideas for their own project.
By Stage 3, the group had a clear vision. They wanted to encourage more people to experience the benefits of being outdoors by creating a mental health and wellbeing walking booklet. They would sell these booklets in cafés, school and other business buildings, raising money for a mental health charity.
“We wanted to do something on mental health because we thought it was important.”
Originally, they had hoped to work with Plessey Woods, installing wellbeing activities and prompts along an existing route. The group explained, "Well we wanted to do a mental health walk originally so we wanted to put posters around an already existing walk that had exercises on but then the walk, Plessey Woods, never got back to us about it so we had to change our idea so we thought the booklet would be a good idea where you just promoted other walks that people could do."
Instead of giving up when their original plan fell through, the group adapted their idea. They realised a booklet could reach even more people by introducing a range of walks, each accompanied by wellbeing activities and exercises.
Their plans didn’t stop there. They also wanted to encourage younger pupils to experience the benefits of spending time outdoors by organising a walk and picnic with children from their school.
They also recognised the positive impact that spending time outdoors had on wellbeing, saying, "Obviously the more promotion mental health gets, the better because you want to prevent people suffering through it so we thought that would be a good thing to do. We also knew we wanted it to be outside because on our £250 [project] we went to Adventure Sunderland, so we just wanted to be outdoors."
Although changing direction wasn’t easy, the experience became one of the group’s greatest strengths. The setback encouraged them to think creatively, solve problems together and produce something that ultimately had the potential to reach even more people.
See a snippet of some of the pages that are part of Push and Pull's booklet below!
Looking back, the group reflected that “managing around the Plessey Woods problem was hard to get around but we did eventually get to an idea after a lot of talks.” Their facilitator recognised that this challenge became a defining moment in the project, helping the group turn disappointment into an even stronger final outcome.
Throughout the journey, one of the highlights was having the freedom to develop ideas outside of the classroom. The group enjoyed “being able to come up with ideas that you wouldn’t get the opportunity to every day,” “being able to do something in a team separate from school” and “being given the freedom to do whatever you want.”
Taking ownership of the project also helped the young people find their voices. One member reflected, “It does boost like a lot of confidence because before KEY+ I wasn’t as confident as I am now, so it was very helpful.”
By the end of the project, they were incredibly proud of what they had achieved. Their work had even attracted interest from a counsellor in Middlesbrough and an autism charity in Sunderland, who were keen to explore if the group could create similar resources for their own communities.
They said that they were most proud of the fact that “we have a finished product” and “we’ve been able to put a booklet together.” They also mentioned being proud of developing their skills, with one member saying: “I’m so proud that I can talk in front of a panel.”
Completing all three stages of KEY+ had a lasting impact on the group. One young person reflected, “I’ve definitely been able to work better with everyone in my team. I already had good relationships with them, but I feel like that’s definitely strengthened as well as my confidence.”
Another explained: “I can overcome challenges because there’s been a lot of problems that have needed solving and I just know that I can do it now.”
The project also changed how the young people saw themselves and what they believe they were capable of.
One member shared: “I never thought of making something like the booklet that we’ve produced, I’m very proud of being able to put that together.”
Another reflected, “I didn’t want to speak up and now I feel like I can share my ideas.”
And when asked what they would say to other young people considering doing the KEY+ Challenge, their advice was clear: “I’d say it’s definitely beneficial just [by] like boosting your confidence in everything.”
Through three stages of the KEY+ Challenge, Push and Pull demonstrated that setbacks don’t have to stop a project. By adapting their ideas, working together and believing in themselves, they created a resource that will continue helping others while developing the confidence, resilience and teamwork that will support them long after their KEY+ journey has finished.
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