Rossie School

The pupils of Rossie School chose to work with Malcy Duff, a cartoonist and art therapist from Edinburgh. They used comic art and portraiture to explore themes of self identity and communicate their thoughts and feelings about the environment that they live and learn in.

Sometimes it was tricky to take part in the project, Malcy was a new person in their environment and naturally it took time to feel comfortable with him. Malcy took things slowly - asking the trusted adults around the young people for advice on the best ways to help them to feel like they could take part - or to choose not to be involved at all.

What Malcy learned was that many of the pupils at Rossie School didn't participate how he thought they might at the beginning of the project, but that they still wanted to be seen and heard. He created these comics based on his time working with them, the adults who support them and his own reflections.

The comic starts by explaining the environment around Rossie School, and some of the circumstances that surround young people when they arrive at the school.

Malcy learned that stigma and perceptions of the school can often make the young people feel invisible and misunderstood.

But that spending time, listening and learning about their interests and experiences allowed him to build relationships that he thought might not be possible at the beginning of the project, and that he could give them some of the visibility they seek through these illustrations.

Malcy also spoke to the adults around the young people to understand their experiences of working with them, the care and passion they had for supporting the young people to do well was clear - but they were also frustrated by unfair systems that keep holding them back in life.

The comic ends suggesting more time is needed to understand the changes that pupils of Rossie and other secure schools need to see and how we make them happen, but that we start with Article 12 of the UNCRC and creating more ways for young people to have their views considered and taken seriously.