20th March 2017
A team of students on The Prince?s Trust Team programme at Barking & Dagenham College gave a local care home a bit of a Spring makeover.
The course gives unemployed 16 to 25 year-olds the skills and confidence to move into employment, education or training. Young people get involved in team building activities, a week-long residential trip, a community project and two weeks of work experience during the course.
For their community project, the team chose The Lodge Dementia Care Home in Collier Row as they felt they could make a lasting and positive impact on the home.
The team of 11 started their project by fundraising at HMRC’s headquarters in Westminster and also at the College by selling muffins, cakes, samosas and chocolates. They managed to raise a total of £350 to buy materials to paint, decorate and rejuvenate the care home.
Then, using the funds, they completed two projects at the care home. Firstly, they painted and prepared a wall and decorated it with sensory boards for the residents to touch.
Next, they built a sensory garden. They dug holes out for a pond, a new vegetable patch (where they planted leeks, blueberries and lettuces) and a couple of places for bright flowers to grow. The Lodge had a few empty plant pots dotted around the garden, so the students filled them up with fragrant herbs for the residents to enjoy.
Charlie Pearce, Prince’s Trust Team Leader at the College said:
“The team worked extremely hard to complete this project and they made us extremely proud. The care home really appreciated our work and sent the team a lovely letter of thanks.
Barking & Dagenham College offers unemployed young people the opportunity to take part in the 12-week Prince’s Trust programme to increase their confidence, motivation and skills. The group are now taking part in their two-week work placement and will complete the Team programme on Friday 21st April. The Trust will then support the young people to take next the next steps into work, education or training
Currently, nearly 40 per cent of young people aged 16-24 in Barking and Dagenham are unemployed, the highest of all London Boroughs.
Three in four young people on Prince’s Trust schemes move into work, education or training. The Prince’s Trust will help 59,000 disadvantaged young people this year, giving them the confidence and skills to turn their lives around.
