1. Set out a study plan early and stick to it. Organise all the things, you want to do (e.g. watch that football match) and fix your timetable around theses treats, it will help you focus on revising and not get distracted. For example, if I do three hours of revision in the morning then I can still go shopping later! This can be a massive help when trying to find the motivation to get through the next three hours of algebra…

There is not much that is scarier than your first day at a new school, college or university (other than spiders or snakes!), especially if you are venturing into this new place without your friends. Starting out in a new place is daunting, having to make new friends, but think of it another way, it is the start of a whole new adventure.

Now that the stress of sitting exams is behind you, before you start thinking about what you want to do next, it might be time to have a little fun! So here are a few things you might like to do…

Our Cambs Gaps learners handed over a cheque for £303 to the East Anglia Children’s Hospice. The money was raised with support from Circuit where they developed handmade gifts which they sold at their “Pop-Up-Shop” in Cambridge earlier this year.

Yes, applying for something to do for next September needs to be thought about now.  Next September may seem a long way off but colleges and training providers will be receiving applications for next year’s intake.  

When you reach your later teenage years it can be rather daunting and exciting at the same time. When you turn 16 you begin to gain rights to do things you wouldn’t have been able to do before, legally. So whether you are 16 or 21, and anywhere in between I’m sure there are quite a few rights that you didn’t know you had.

“What if Christmas, he thought, doesn’t come from a store? What if Christmas, perhaps, means a little bit more?”

Dr Seuss, How The Grinch Stole Christmas, 1957

With Billions of pounds being spent this Christmas on presents to give to someone else, this statement really does ring true. Why should we give to other people?

It’s because giving is in the spirit of Christmas.

We are now hearing about the full extent of horrific sexual abuse of children committed by Ian Watkins, former front-man of Alternative Welsh rock band the Lostprophets. Watkins was admired and celebrated by his fans, many of them young underage girls, and it has emerged how he exploited his celebrity status for his own sexual gratification.

This has got me thinking about the harm celebrity worship can bring. We follow their every move on Twitter and Instagram, and we read endless stories about their love lives or look at pictures of them being papped at the supermarket looking hungover or wearing no make-up.

There’s no denying it that the festive season is well and truly underway. As early as August, when the sun was still shining, some shops had their stock out for Christmas and we are now bombarded daily with adverts telling us what products and brands we should buy for ourselves and other people. The John Lewis Bear and Rabbit ad is on our screens costing a massive £1 million to make - money well spent? You decide!

During Two World Wars thousands of young adults gave their lives for the benefit of others. They paid the ultimate price of their own lives to defend the freedom of their countrymen.

Their sacrifice is remembered this month in a variety of ways: memorial services, poppy wearing, times of silence, prayers, the playing of the last post and the marching of old soldiers in tribute to the fallen who made the ultimate sacrifice.

Some young people I meet and work with tell me they want a job, any job, anywhere, doing anything!  This is great and you need to keep up that positive attitude, but......

It is worth thinking about the future too and where a job or career may lead.  You can always find out more about careers on this website www.nationalcareersservice.direct.gov.uk.

Two decades and eight – a dream that I hate
Trusted in deals and promises that take
Mind is all scarred – turned inwards to hate
Standing on the edge – two decades and eight

These are the lines of a lyric I penned after meeting an ex-offender who was trying to repair his life after a journey that had taken him to hell and back. However, this journey was still continuing as he tried to break the grip that drugs were having on his life.

“This is amazing”,  “about time this happened...” “What a lovely thing...” “How the community is going to benefit from this”... ”just what the Young People need...” “a great building lovely atmosphere”...”wish I could come”...”how clever, great idea”.

These are some of the comments that were said to me on Wednesday 18 September at the GAPs open day in Cambridge on Nunn’s way, Arbury. Local parents, youth workers, shop owners, community workers, young people, police officers and us! What a lovely day, with lots of young people really interested and eager to see what GAPs was all about.

Last week at the MTV Video Music Awards in the United States, Miley Cirus attracted a storm of criticism and controversy in the news and on social media. Dressed in a flesh-coloured bikini, and prancing around stage with a foam finger, twerking as she went, the performance of the 20 year old singer at the awards has been described as inappropriate by many, seeing her in particular as setting a bad example to her young fans who look up to her and admire her.