Stress affects everyone, particularly in the build up to exams, job interviews and when pressure mounts at work.

At Weston College, our expert Welfare Team is on hand to help you if you are worried about your stress levels or other mental health issues.

Here are some of the top tips our Welfare Team give to combat stress…

Start a diary

Writing about your day will help you to identify things that make you feel stressed. You’ll probably be surprised to find that a pattern soon emerges; and this may be linked to time pressure, personality clashes, inappropriate demands or simply trying to do too many things at once. Keeping a diary will help you to blow off steam in a productive way.

Talk to someone

Talk through your diary with a good friend or someone at College - even the act of discussing things often makes you feel better. The College’s Welfare Team is on hand to help our students and offers impartial advice to ease the problems that you’ve discovered.

Learn how to relax

Practise deep-breathing techniques. Breathe in while counting to five; hold your breath for five seconds then breathe out slowly. Repeat this 10 times when feeling stressed, concentrating on nothing but your breathing. You can relax your neck muscles by keeping your shoulders level and trying to touch each shoulder with your ear.

Take time out

For five minutes every hour try to chill out and think of nothing but your perfect situation. This could be a dream holiday, ideal partner or simply thinking about doing nothing at all. You will be surprised at how effectively this can lower stress levels.

Exercise regularly

You do not have to be a gym freak to get the stress-beating benefits of exercise. Even 20 minutes of brisk walking three times a week will help to reduce stress as well as promoting restful sleep.

Plan breaks in your day

The aim here is to allow time for the unexpected. Get up 15 minutes earlier than you think you need to and prepare for the day without rushing. Even better, get things ready the night before. Try to have 20 minutes in which you can do whatever you want, even if it is simply sitting doing nothing.

Things to avoid

Smoking and drinking alcohol may appear to help you deal with the effects of stress in the short term, but in the long run they both lead to more tension and anxiety, and can easily lead to dependence. When smokers say that smoking helps them relax, it is because it alleviates the effects of their smoking addiction.

So your secondary education is coming to an end and you're faced with many choices...

Different people learn in different ways, and some may choose to stay on at a local sixth form. For the majority of local school leavers, Weston College is a popular option due to the diverse range of courses and wanting to experience a fresh environment with a lively and exciting atmosphere as well.

If you're considering College but are unsure about how it compares to school, read on!

Students at Weston College are preparing their end of year performances, and looking to borrow props for their performances.

Performing and Production Arts students from the College are putting on two productions as their end of year performances, sourcing all props for the shows themselves. They are therefore looking to borrow props from the local community throughout May in order to bring their performances to life.

Both productions will be performed by students, however their sets are also being designed by Production Arts Technical students who are working hard to bring their vision into reality and make the sets as authentic as possible.

One group of 13 Level 3 students will be performing the play Two by Jim Cartwright, which is set in a pub in North England in the 1980s. In the play, 13 colourful and real characters are brought to life and let you into their lives, highlighting the ups and downs of relationships and the complex range of human emotion. As the night unfolds, the audience is lead into the Landlady and Landlords tragic secret.

The students are looking to source the following props:

• 5 - 10 bar stools (short)
• 2 bar stools (tall)
• 5 wooden round tables (pub style)
• Darts board
• Juke box
• 3 beer taps – need to be able to fix to a bar top and pull down, but will not be ‘working’
• Empty spirit bottles (clear & brown)
• 1 big old red carpet/rug (pub style)
• 5-7 period ashtrays.
•  

The students’ performance of Two will take place on 15 and 16 May at 1:30pm and 7pm at the Berkoff Theatre, based at the College’s Knightstone Campus.

Tickets are just £5 on the door.

The second show is Fiddler on the Roof, which 20 Level 3 students have been working on. The show is set in 1905 imperial Russia and tells the story of a poor milkman trying to protect his five daughters and instil them with traditional values in the face of a changing world. The students are looking to embody an old and rustic set design, and are sourcing the following props:

• 3-4 milk churns
• 1 old fashioned sewing machine
• 2 small wooden bar tables
• 1 sturdy hand farm cart.

Their performance of Fiddler on the Roof will take place on 16 May at 7pm, and 17 May at 1:30pm and 7pm at The Blakehay Theatre. Tickets are £10 and available to purchase from the box office.

Jonathan Swindall, Subject Area Manager for Visual Arts in Practice, said: “The students have all worked really hard to put their end of year shows together and we are extremely proud of the progress they have made.

“As our Production Arts Technical students are also doing the set design, we are appealing to the community to lend us a few props to help make every part of their productions spectacular and reflect all the work they have been putting into these shows.”

All props need to be available for the students to collect by Friday 11 May, and will be returned safely to their owners week commencing Monday 21 May.

Could anyone who is happy to lend props to the students please contact jonathan.swindall@weston.ac.uk or peter.tyler@weston.ac.uk