YOUNGSTERS SCOOP ROYAL AWARD FOR COMMUNITY WORK

Students from City of Wolverhampton College have picked up a royal award for their community work.

The group of 10 young people, who were all on the Prince’s Trust self development programme’s Team 300, scooped the Community Impact Award at the trust’s Celebrate Success Awards at Aston Villa Football Club on November 22.

The youngsters were awarded the accolade after going above and beyond while on a two week community project at Blakenhall Resource Centre.

Over the fortnight the team remodelled a rundown garden so that it could be used for outdoor therapy sessions by people suffering from dementia.

They dug out and extended an existing patio, laid two tonnes of sand, one tonne of gravel and 40 paving slabs. They also upcycled outdoor furniture, built raised sensory bed, stained 200ft of fencing, spread three tonnes of top soil and planted a variety of plants and trees.

Team Leader Karl Broadhurst said: “The team made an extraordinary commitment during their two weeks. The scale of the project was immense, but the impact it had was even greater.

“The garden is now frequently used by the service users, enriching their experience at the centre and improving their quality of life. It also inspired some members of the team programme, two of which have now decided to pursue opportunities that focus on helping others.

“The students should be extremely proud of not only picking up the Community Impact Award but also for how they have changed people’s lives for the better.”

The students will now go through to the national awards which take place in London in March.

The Prince’s Trust Team programme gives unemployed young people aged 16 to 25 the chance to learn new skills and improve their confidence and self-esteem through a range of outdoor activities, community work and work experience.    

During the programme the young people take part in an action-packed residential week, organise fundraising activities, carry out voluntary work in the community and benefit from two weeks’ work experience with a local employer.    

Participants also get help with job searches, writing a CV and interview skills, and will gain national qualifications in first aid and food safety and certificates in employability, team work and community skills.

The programme was launched in 1990 and City of Wolverhampton College has been delivering courses across the Black Country and Shropshire since September 2000 with over 2000 local young people taking part.  

The Prince’s Trust aims to support 58,000 vulnerable young people this year, giving them the confidence and skills to turn their lives around. Three in four young people on Prince’s Trust schemes move into work, education or training.

For more information on the Team programme contact The Prince’s Trust team at City of Wolverhampton College on 01902 836000. The college welcomes offers from individuals and businesses to support the delivery of the programme by offering work experience, mock interviews or voluntary projects.

For further information about The Prince’s Trust, visit www.princes-trust.org.uk or call 0800 842 842.