This summer our North-East England team delivered an amazing NCS programme. Our team worked with 119 young people over 6 weeks on residential and social action programmes. Throughout the summer, the young people raised a staggering £3074.62 and completed 3570 hours of volunteering and social action!

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The young people created their own social action projects such as “Plates 4 Paws” to ensure that every member of the family was able to get the food they needed and focused on donations of pet food to Hospitality & Hope Foodbank in South Shields. They worked with community interest company New Enterprise Studios to take photographs of people’s pets to raise money for their donations.

“Steps for Smiles” worked with Niall Quinn Children’s Unit to buy toys and blankets for children who are being treated for serious illnesses. The group raised funds through a sponsored walk from Hebburn to Whitley Bay. The Steps for Smiles group were also the overall winners of the NCS summer Enterprise Challenge with their ‘Put a Finger down’ TikTok Challenge that looked at the challenges faced by women in the world of work, in addition to a comprehensive lesson plan video to support young girls have a wide range of opportunities in their prospective careers.

“Food for the People” raised funds to tackle food poverty in South Tyneside. They held a tombola and a bake sale to gather donations and purchase the food for the foodbank. The group also wrote a letter to their local MP asking for them to take notice of the issues around food poverty and waste dumping in their local area.

Another highlight of our programme was Kate Osbourne MP visiting our Wave 3 young people whilst they were completing their social action. She discussed their projects and answered questions that the young people had, surrounding government policy and local issues such as anti-social behaviour and waste dumping.

  

The overall feedback from parents and young people regarding the programme was overwhelmingly positive, the following quotes are from young people who completed the programme:

“I have gained so much confidence from doing NCS and have made so many friends”

“I feel like I am a new person since doing NCS. I got out of my comfort zone so much!”

“I’ve made friends for life”

A huge well done to our staff team as well, who worked tirelessly throughout the summer to provide an unforgettable experience!