September newsletter

We hope you have had a good and restful summer.  The K+C Foundation team is excited to be back in the office as of September and able to resume meeting with our supporters and charity partners (all socially distanced of course!).

Many of our partners have worked tirelessly over the summer to provide support to their clients, as the pandemic continues to have a significant impact on mental health and employment in particular.
 
In 2017, Kensington and Chelsea already had a higher than average unemployment rate of 6.7% compared to an average of 5% in other London boroughs.  We know that following the lockdown, that number is growing and concerns about financial security have become a pressing issue for many residents.
 
Our Skills + Employment programme remains one of our key fundraising priorities.  If you would like to know more about this work or to make a donation, please contact [email protected]

With best wishes
Victoria Steward Todd

Skills + Employment: Supporting young people into meaningful employment

In September last year, we started a partnership with the Spear Programme based in North Kensington.  They offer a highly successful employability programme for young people from disadvantaged backgrounds which supports them into employment, training or further education.

Each course works with up to 16 young people age 16-24 who are not currently in employment, education or training.  Once they have graduated, each young person receives personalised support for a further year to help them transition into work.

As of March 2020, an incredible 82% of the trainees from the first North Kensington cohort, were in employment, education or training.

Children + Young People: Supporting disadvantaged young people to study 

As part of our Children + Young People fund, we are currently supporting a project for disadvantaged young people who are unable to study at home due to lack of space and digital access. 

At a local college, where 57% of students live in poverty, selected young people are invited to an after school club 3 nights per week where they are offered a hot nutritious meal and a safe space to complete their homework with access to IT and learning resources.

Fawzia, aged 15, attended these sessions and the impact has been remarkable.  Fawzia’s mental health improved, she stopped self-harming and her self-esteem was noticeably better. After 3 months her core subjects improved by two grades.

Read more

Covid19 Appeal:  On your bike!

Due to Covid19, a local youth club were unable to deliver their usual boxing and football sessions for young people.  Instead, to ensure their health and well being, they bought bikes and the young people took the Bikeability cycling training course.  They are now using the bikes to get to school, get fit and keep them active.

Donate while you shop through Amazon Smile

Shop on AmazonSmile at https://smile.amazon.co.uk/ch/1125940-0, and Amazon donates to the Kensington + Chelsea Foundation at no cost to you.