College News

Recovery Connections Connects with QE Psychology Students

A Level Psychology students from QE have attended a thought-provoking and insightful talk by Adam Petson from Recovery Connections in Middlesbrough. Recovery Connections is a substance use recovery organisation which seeks to help people both in a residential rehabilitation centre and in the local community with Adam working specifically with Teesside University students to support them with their recovery journey. The detailed presentation accompanied the work being completed by Psychology students in lessons with a key theme of the course being addictive behaviour and Adam shared his own personal experiences of substance misuse and his road to recovery. He also discussed the experiences of those he has worked with during treatment and addressed the stigma surrounding addiction. Since the session, students have started to enquire about the possibility of undertaking work experience with Recovery Connections.

Mae Fenwick, who studies Psychology, Biology and Law at QE, comments: ‘The talk was incredibly interesting as we were able to see how what we learn in lessons is applied to real life and addiction.’ Yvonne Dowson, who is enrolled on Psychology, Criminology and History, says: ‘Adam was able to provide us with a new outlook on addiction solidifying what we have been studying in class’. Amelia Calvert, a student of Psychology, English Literature and Law, adds: ‘Hearing from Adam himself about how he feels about addiction was fascinating. I also enjoyed finding out about what other countries do to support addicts compared to the United Kingdom’.

Gemma Hillyard, teacher of Psychology at QE, concludes: ‘Our second-year students have spent a term studying addictive behaviour so we arranged for Adam to come and speak to them about his own journey and the work he now does at Recovery Connections. The sessions he ran were eye-opening and it was invaluable for our students to learn about the realities of addiction and hear about his experiences first-hand which they could link to what we have been covering in the classroom’.

For more information on QE’s A Level Psychology course, please contact Laurence Job (Deputy Principal) at ljob@qeliz.ac.uk.