The Diana Award is thrilled to announce match funding of £610,860 from the #iwill Fund for their Mentoring Programme
The Diana Award Mentoring Programme supports young people to develop their careers skills, whilst making positive change in their community. We collaborate with professional volunteer mentors to deliver our group mentoring and careers skills development programme for young people aged 14-18 who are at risk of becoming NEET (Not in Education, Employment or Training) in Birmingham, Leeds, and London.
10.2% of young people aged 16-24 in the UK are NEET (Not in Education, Employment or Training) – an estimated 692,000 young people (ONS. 2022). Participation in social action can support young people in the development of careers skills, improving employment outcomes and social mobility.
Volunteer mentors, sharing professional advice and guidance and providing careers skills training. The programme also encourages young people to participate in youth-led social action, with mentors and mentees working together to develop projects tackling issues that directly impact them and their community.
Mentee - ‘It gave me the confidence to speak up and speak out about topics I care about. It has also given me an insight into the world of work, which I hadn’t had before. Before the programme I didn’t know anything about CVs, interviews, or different career routes, so I now have a lot more career awareness.’
Teacher - ‘This year I have seen students who are quiet and usually don’t get involved in group work contribute and engage without worry […] they are more confident to be seen and heard. The students are inquisitive and keen to learn how to improve their employability skills... It has highlighted how similar they are in some areas and helped build confidence when it comes to speaking and being involved with peers they wouldn’t necessarily work with‘.
Mentor - ‘I learned how to encourage the shyest of individuals, or those not comfortable working in an unfamiliar group. This is a critical soft skill for getting things done at work. It doesn’t get more worthwhile than this. Young people do have the power to change the world. We are adults need to help fuel that belief.’
The #iwill Fund will be providing ongoing support for social action projects, beyond the twelve-week Mentoring Programme. The fund brings together a group of organisations who all contribute funding to embed meaningful social action into the lives of young people. Social action involves activities such as campaigning, fundraising and volunteering, all of which enable young people to make a positive difference in their communities as well as develop their own skills and knowledge.
Young people will have the opportunity to apply for further support for their youth-led social action project through our Social Action Accelerator Programme. Groups of young people from each area (Birmingham, Leeds and London) will be supported by and volunteer mentors for another six months.
Young people will also have the opportunity to network with volunteer mentors and other young people engaged in meaningful and impactful youth-led social action projects. They will be encouraged to share their projects in monthly forums, and at local and national events including National Mentoring Week.
The #iwill Fund is made possible thanks to £66 million joint investment from The National Lottery Community Fund and the Department for Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) to support young people to access high quality social action opportunities. The National Lottery Community Fund is acting as a match funder and awarding grants on behalf of the #iwill Fund.
Tessy Ojo CBE, CEO, The Diana Award, says; “We are so grateful to #iwill Fund for their funding boost for our mentoring support to young people in London, Birmingham and Leeds. We are dedicated to ensuring young people get the opportunities and support they need to thrive especially in a post pandemic world and can use their lived experience to shape their communities for good. Our mentoring programme puts youth social action front and centre.”
Helen Whyman, Head of the #iwill Fund, added: “Thanks to National Lottery players and DCMS, the work of the #iwill Fund continues to have an incredible impression on young people. This £66 million joint investment supports young people to access and lead high quality social action. This youth social action benefits the young people as they develop skills as they undertake social action that is challenging and socially impactful on issues that are important to them and also helps the local communities who benefit from the impressive action taken by young people. We are looking forward to seeing the fantastic impact of The Diana Award Mentoring Programme which will support young people in Birmingham, Leeds and London.”
For case studies/interviews, please contact Emma Pelling: 07958 558172, emma@pellingpr.co.uk www.diana-award.org.uk
MEDIA SPOKESPEOPLE
Tessy Ojo, Chief Executive, The Diana Award.
Tessy is a passionate and practical campaigner who has gained an international reputation for fostering positive change in the lives of young people and the impact it has on communities around them. At the heart of her work is the belief that with the right support and investment, young people are the best instigators for achieving real, sustainable change in their lives, their communities and the lives of their peers.
About The Diana Award
The Diana Award was set up in memory of The Duke of Cambridge and Duke of Sussex’s mother, Diana, Princess of Wales, and her belief that young people have the power to change the world for the better.
The charity fosters, develops and inspires positive change in the lives of young people through four key programmes which include; a mentoring programme for young people at risk, a youth-led anti-bullying ambassadors campaign, a collaborative Changemakers programme that aims to reimagine mental health support for young people from racialised communities and a prestigious award which publicly recognises young changemakers – The Diana Award.
NOTES TO EDITORS
• The #iwill Fund is made possible thanks to £66 million joint investment from The National Lottery Community Fund and the Department for Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) to support young people to access high quality social action opportunities.
• The #iwill Fund brings together a group of organisations who all contribute funding to embed meaningful social action into the lives of young people.
• The #iwill Fund supports the aims of the #iwill campaign - to make involvement in social action a part of life for young people, by recognising the benefit for both young people and their communities.
• By bringing together funders from across different sectors and by making sure that young people have a say in where the funding goes – the #iwill Fund is taking a collaborative approach.
The #iwill movement
• The #iwill movement is a collaboration of over 1000 organisations and 300 young #iwill Ambassadors from across the UK. They are united by a shared belief that all children and young people should be supported and empowered to make a positive difference on the issues that affect their lives, their communities, and broader society.
• #iwill was launched in November 2013 after an independent review into how different sectors could help more young people to make a positive difference.
• The #iwill movement is supported by an independent coordination hub, hosted by Volunteering Matters & UK Youth.
• Take the lead by signing up to the Power of Youth Charter at www.iwill.org.uk or follow us @iwill_campaign on twitter, Instagram and LinkedIn.
The National Lottery Community Fund
We are the largest funder of community activity in the UK – we support people and communities to prosper and thrive.
We’re proud to award money raised by National Lottery players to communities across England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland, and to work closely with Government to distribute vital grants and funding from key Government programmes and initiatives.
Our funding has a positive impact and makes a difference to people’s lives. We support projects focused on things that matter, including economic prosperity, employment, young people, mental health, loneliness and helping the UK reach net zero by 2050.
Thanks to the support of National Lottery players, our funding is open to everyone. We’re privileged to be able to work with the smallest of local groups right up to UK-wide charities, enabling people and communities to bring their ambitions to life.
National Lottery players raise over £30 million each week for good causes throughout the UK. Since The National Lottery began in 1994, £43 billion has been raised for good causes. National Lottery funding has been used to support over 635,000 projects - 255 projects per postcode area.
Department for Culture, Media and Sport
General enquiries - Email: enquiries@dcms.gov.uk, 020 7211 6000
Press Office - Media enquiries (journalists only) 020 7211 2210, Out of hours telephone pager 07699 751 153.
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