British Council Qatar and HSBC Bank Middle East Limited have announced students from Al Bayan Independent School for Girls as the winners of the recently held Taqaddam final competition. 
These students competed against some 240 others from 12 schools in Qatar on actionable ideas to help their community.
Taqaddam is a targeted core skills initiative developed by HSBC Bank Middle East Limited and the British Council using content created by Spark&Mettle, in collaboration with the Ministry of Education and Higher Education and 12 schools in Qatar. This year, the programme supported 15 teachers and some 240 students to develop skills, confidence and lifelong learning, enabling them to be prepared for the world of work, according to a press statement.
The students attended the first workshop in March. They participated in surveys and assessments to build an accurate picture of their ‘leading’ character strengths, how they perceive intelligence and personal qualities and the extent to which they feel they can positively impact their own lives, school and the community.
After completing these surveys, each student received a Personal Development Plan, outlining their journey for the following seven weeks. Young people taking part log on to a tailor-made, online resource that help them identify their personal strengths and abilities and areas where they need further development. Students go on to complete missions week by week, building up their personal portfolios and earning badges as they progress.
The programme ended with the Make it Happen! Event, where students showcased their learning from Taqaddam through devising an innovative idea to tackle a key global and social challenge that they identified within their communities.
Dr Frank Fitzpatrick, director of British Council Qatar, said: “Taqaddam is designed to encourage young people to play an active role in their own journey of personal development and I must say that I am delighted with the skills and confidence that students in Qatar have gained in such a short space of time.” 
Richard Keery, country head of Commercial Banking at HSBC in Qatar, said: “HSBC is proud to be partnering with the British Council in this excellent (Taqaddam) programme.”
Noor al-Madeed, expert at the Ministry of Education and Higher Education, noted: “We appreciate the partnership and co-operation with the British Council for its active role in launching programmes that stimulate student skills to serve the aspirations and vision of Qatar.”
The programme is now running for the second year due to the success and improvement demonstrated by the young people involved, the statement notes. Some updates have been introduced, including Taqaddam Tasters - which opens the Taqaddam experience to 900 young people – including children of HSBC staff and students who are not yet enrolled in Taqaddam, as well as the two-week Taqaddam Winner internship opportunity with the British Council in Qatar and a chance for the first three winning teams to participate in volunteer activities with HSBC.