Courtney has already faced many challenges in her life, being adopted and living with autism and bipolar disorder, which sometimes makes it hard for her to focus in class. But despite these challenges, Courtney proved to herself just how much she could achieve.

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As part of the accreditation pilot programme, Courtney took part in a project with seven other students, all working at pre-entry level, to learn more about online safety. Together, they researched important issues with organisations like the UK Safer Internet Centre, CEOP, ChildNet and Childline. The group quickly realised how serious the problem of sextortion is and how little young people are taught about it.

Courtney played an important part in creating a lesson and resources to explain sextortion in a clear, simple way. First, their session was delivered to 12 Personal Social Development tutors, and then it was shared with over 1,500 students across the college. Their work helped protect other young people by giving them the knowledge and confidence to stay safe online.

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For Courtney, the project was a turning point. She developed her confidence, worked as part of a team, and even achieved her first formal qualification. This gave her a huge sense of pride and belief in herself.

Thanks to her hard work and determination, Courtney has now progressed to the Kings Trust programme. Her journey shows that with the right support and meaningful opportunities, every student has the power to succeed and make a difference.

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Courtney says:

"This project was really good and helped me developed a lot of skills. The lesson we helped Charlotte make for the rest of the college was very useful. It is something that young people need know, as most aren't aware how dangerous the online world can be. We are proud of our work as we know it has made a difference to this generation by teaching other students how to be safe online.”