IVE awarded NCS grant for delivery of experiences to help local teens become ‘world ready and work ready’

IVE have today announced a new community experience programme funded by NCS (National Citizen Service) that will support young people across Bradford, Leeds and Sheffield.

The grant is part of a significant £20m funding package that NCS Trust have awarded to organisations across England for the delivery of community-based experiences at a local and grassroots level.

These new experiences will complement NCS’ existing away from home residential offer by providing more opportunities for teenagers to engage in local activities that foster skills development, deepen their understanding of the community, and empower them to contribute positively to its improvement.  The grants will also support organisations that cater to specific groups of young people who may not have participated in previous NCS initiatives.

In collaboration with the National Youth Agency and StreetGames, NCS assessed more than 400 applications and IVE was selected as one of around 100 organisations to receive funding.

The grant will allow IVE to deliver Applied Creativity Labs to help 360 16/17 yr olds find new social action solutions to real world local climate change problems, nurturing key transferable employability skills along the way.  They will hear from council and climate action groups about key local issues, from social action/media campaign companies and receive IVE’s creative problem-solving training.  They will then devise, develop and present new social action/media ideas to an Industry Panel of climate change stakeholders from the council, local businesses and climate action hubs. Following panel feedback groups will take final steps to activate their social action solutions to climate change for their local council/climate action group.

Sarah Mumford, Associate Director, IVE, said “At IVE, we believe that creativity shapes a better world. Knowledge alone is not enough – being able to apply divergent and convergent thinking skills to help find innovative solutions to a huge global crisis such as climate change, is vital. Our labs are designed to give children and young people the skills to drive positive change. By applying creativity to real-world challenges, learning becomes real and young people use their new skills to take an active part in creating their own futures.”

Mark Gifford, CEO of NCS Trust, added: “I am delighted to welcome a diverse range of local, grassroots and community organisations from across the youth sector to deliver reimagined NCS experiences. This allows us to reach more young people than ever before, ensuring they are equipped with the skills and perspective to become work ready and world ready. Additionally, our grants for targeted experiences will enable us to reach underserved young people and communities.”

Gifford added, “Together, we will work towards creating a country of confident, connected, caring citizens where everyone feels at home.”

Over the past decade, more than 800,000 young people have benefitted from an NCS experience, dedicating over 18 million hours to community based social action, while gaining invaluable life experiences.

To find out more about which colleges and schools these Applied Creativity Labs are taking place in and when please contact sarah@weareive.org. There is a particular open call for 16/17 yr olds in East Leeds in particular to apply to be part of one in the spring of 2024 to be based at ChapfelfM. Please contact sarah@weareive.org if interested.

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A full list of organisations receiving grant funding to deliver NCS experiences can be found at wearencs.com/our-2023-grant-giving 

For more information, please contact
IVE  Press Office – evie@weareive.org 0113 322 3050
NCS Press Office – email media@ncstrust.org.uk or call us on 020 3920 8576.
 

About IVE

IVE is a creative education provider who design programmes and training for both young people and adults, from the classroom to the boardroom, that help people fulfil their creative potential and make positive change happen. Please visit www.weareive.org for more information.

To find out more about IVE and Applied Creativity Labs visit https://weareive.org/ive-studio/applied-creativity/

About NCS (National Citizen Service)

NCS is an experience like no other. Designed for 16-17 year olds, and for young people (aged between 18 and 24) with special educational needs and disabilities, NCS runs year round and offers a range of experiences for young people throughout the year, helping them to have greater confidence, resilience and wellbeing. Teens get the opportunity to mix with a new crowd, learn about independent living, take on new challenges and build friendships.

The programme is all about emboldening young people – by giving them a taste of independence, equipping them with essential life skills, and building work-readiness through volunteering and social action.

NCS participants will benefit from a new residential experience from 2023, which will consist of a five day stay away from home where they will take part in activities that centre around employability, independent living or social action. Young people will have access to digital experiences and will be able to take part in NCS closer to home with regular one-off activities where they can gain new skills, learn more about their local community, and how they can help to improve it.

Since 2009 more than 800,000 young people have benefitted from an NCS experience, completing over 18 million hours of community action, and gaining priceless life experiences.

NCS offers bursaries and support to those who need it most, including families on Universal Credit and young people with special educational needs or disabilities, in line with its commitment to make the life-changing NCS experience available to every young person.

NCS delivers value for money. £3.05 of benefits to society for every £1 spent. During lockdown NCS has had over 1.7 million unique engagements with teens through its ‘Staying Connected’ hub.

About NCS Trust

NCS Trust is an Arm’s Length Body of DCMS incorporated by Royal Charter and established to shape, support, champion and lead a thriving National Citizen Service.

National Citizen Service Trust is registered in England and Wales with Royal Charter Body number RC000894.

To learn more about NCS Trust visit LinkedIn

To find out more visit wearencs.com

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