By Tom Green

Sports stadia out-of-hours can have a slightly eerie feel - empty seats, deserted buildings, wide-open spaces. But at Headingley in Leeds on a warm July evening, a small building tucked between the cricket ground and the rugby league pitch is humming with activity.

The building is the Leeds Rhinos (the rugby league team) study support centre and tonight it is the venue for a meeting of volunteer mentors from the city's Playing for Success (PfS) programme.

Playing for Success is a Department for Education and Skills initiative established in 1997 in partnership with the Football Association Premier League, the Football League, individual football clubs and local authorities. The idea was simple – to offer children the chance to learn in centres based at venues they associated with sporting achievement.

The programme has been a notable success. There are PfS programmes at football clubs all around the country, and increasingly they are spreading to other sporting  venues. Many offer opportunities for volunteer mentors.

PfS in Leeds, which started at the Leeds United Football Club and now has centres at venues across the city, is one of the largest. "We offer education in a different context," explains one of  the programme's Mentor Coordinator, Victoria Perry. "Sport is the enticement but the focus is on literacy, numeracy and IT. We also try to develop the children's self-confidence and esteem and encourage self-directed learning."

There are around 250 volunteer mentors involved across Leeds. "Their role is really important," Victoria explains. "The classes are run by experienced teachers and the mentors assist them by providing encouragement and support to the children. They're one of the key things that make the sessions different from being at school."

You don't need to have experience in education to be a mentor. "Our volunteers are all ages and from all backgrounds," says Victoria. "In fact we want that mix – it's good for the children to get a wide range of role models."

Well supported

David Simons, one of the Leeds PfS mentors, says that he had no previous experience working with children before getting involved in the programme. "I'd never done anything like this before," he says. "But I've always been well supported. You're never left on your own, and the mentors help each other as well.

Like many of the mentors, Karen Moss was recruited through her workplace. "I got talked into it!" she admits. Not that she regrets it. "You do feel like you're helping people out," she says, "but most of all it's a really good laugh."

The children, either Key Stage 2 (aged 7-11) or 3 (aged 11-14) come for two-hour sessions once a week for 10 weeks and volunteers are asked to commit for a session a week for the same period. They get an induction before they start and, as with any volunteering with children, they undergo a criminal record check before starting. At Leeds, as a Gold Standard provider of the Open College Network, accredited training is offered for those that want it.

Barry Snowden is one of the most experienced mentors with PfS in Leeds. "Over the course of the first sessions I was involved in I noticed that one young girl's reading notably improved – that gives you a great sense of satisfaction," he says. "Sometimes after a hard day at work you don't fancy going to the learning centre, but by the end of the session you feel really happy to have done it." Lauren Raynham, who became a mentor when she was a student, agrees. "It takes you out of ordinary life," she says.

When asked what advice they would give to anyone considering becoming a PfS mentor, the Leeds volunteers are unanimously positive. "Mentoring really can change your life," says Ruth Saxton. "It was being a mentor that got me into teaching."

 "I'd recommend it to anyone," says Kal Kalyan. "It's an excellent break from the norm."

Find out more about the Playing for Success initiative.

Search the do-it.org.uk database  for Playing for Success opportunities in your area.

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