A wealth of research demonstrates that young people from certain ethnic minority backgrounds, those who face financial barriers, those with additional needs,and those who have been in care, face not just academic hurdles but higher rates of unemployment, exclusion from school, lower wages and greater job insecurity. The fallout of the pandemic and the escalating cost of living crisis has only exacerbated these inequalities, with the educational “attainment gap” widening over the past two years.

We partner closely with schools in under-resourced areas with high FSM. Teachers refer students who are disengaged or underachieving due to low confidence, low self-esteem,low academic attainment, in need of an additional role model or at risk of exclusion. We run weekly one-to-one mentoring and group activities where up to 16 mentees and 16 adult mentors work as a team to develop young people's confidence, character strengths, engagement and preparedness for their next steps into adulthood.