Surrey Freemasons have generously donated £40,000 to the Surrey Care Trust, enabling around 35 young individuals who might otherwise not achieve school qualifications to receive tailored educational and personal support.
The Surrey Care Trust’s initiative, ‘STEPS to 16’, offers a vital lifeline to 14-16-year-olds who are struggling to stay in mainstream education. These vulnerable youths in Surrey are grappling with numerous obstacles hindering their educational journey, including emotional and mental health issues, specific learning requirements, familial hardship, and personal trauma. Such struggles often lead to substantial roadblocks as they stand on the brink of adulthood.
The ‘STEPS to 16′ programme goes beyond offering English and Maths qualifications. It endeavors to pave the way for disadvantaged youths to access sixth-form colleges and the workplace. Moreover, it imparts personalized life skills courses, covering Cookery, Computer Literacy, Preparation for Work, and Law and Order. This curriculum is designed to directly confront and mitigate the students’ vulnerabilities and disadvantages, addressing the specific challenges from their past.
It is worth noting that students from vulnerable backgrounds across the UK are four times more likely to be expelled from mainstream schools compared to their peers.
by charitytoday
