Baz’s story

I’m 14 years old. I was in a very bad situation, fighting, smoking, just messing about. It was a really bad time, I was mis-behaving a lot, I was carrying knives, egging houses and smoking weed. One of my friends told me to carry the knife for him because he was going to get searched at school.  I got kicked out of that school for having the knife and fighting. Then another school for arguing with teachers and messing about, I was put on a trail.  My mum was really upset that I was kicked out of school.

I had to work with Kev, Kev used to write assessments and then Daniel - a Youth Support Worker - from Nottingham City Council, would do the interventions. Daniel gave me sheets to do and activities like, who are your friends, who are bad people and who are your role models, stuff about peer pressure and getting into problems where the consequences would affect me.  Getting rid of bad relationships, achieving my goals and also being able to communicate without violence which I learnt when I heard about the Ben Kinsella Trust  (Ben's Story | The Ben Kinsella Trust) and how I was acting could’ve led to something bad happening.  

Daniel worked with me for four months.  He introduced me to sports stuff and other hobbies like football and basketball, and if I wanted, I could try out music, so I didn’t have free time which I could mess about in.  I started doing other sports and stuff, like football.

I don’t carry knives anymore, I don’t smoke, I’m more well behaved in school, and I don’t mess about like I used to, and I’m back in a stable environment in school.  Mum thinks I’m doing way better now and in a better place and getting a better education at an alternative provision school now.  I’m going to finish school and then go into brick laying, which I’m learning right now.  I’ve made new friends and they are alright.

I want to tell other people to stop smoking weed and carrying knives, because the amount of bad things that I’ve done is unreal.  If you are still in an ordinary school to not take it for granted, as I’d do anything to be back there now.