A presidentially-approved charity has officially launched in Greater Manchester, encouraging young people head back to school, to help tackle educational inequality.
US President Barack Obama, former President Bill Clinton and the late Nelson Mandela are amongst supporters of City Year charity that has been running in the US since 1988.
But City Year Manchester is now giving North West young people aged 18-25 a chance to join-up to become ‘school mentors’, as well as improving their own career prospects.
Zillah Fogarty-Wilde, an 18-year-old school-leaver, said she was ‘excited about the year head’ and that as somebody with dyslexia she looked forward to working with others who have the condition because she ‘understands the challenges the face.’
She said: “I grew up with my family in a council house in Hollingworth. It was cramped but happy.
“At the time I didn’t think my childhood was anything out of the ordinary but looking back it was different.
“My granddad, who had dementia, lived with us so I could never have friends over and I had caring responsibilities from a young age.
“When he died, it left me with an empty feeling. I thought, ‘what now?’
“It was then that I came across City Year; it looked so welcoming and having helped granddad for so long, the idea of serving others meant something to me.
“Initially though I thought I couldn’t do it as I have dyslexia but City Year said that didn’t stop me being a role model.”
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Twenty-five young people have already signed up, starting their ‘year of service’ as mentors and tutors.
Heading into Chorlton High School in Manchester; Manchester Enterprise Academy in Wythenshawe; Stretford High School in Trafford; and Summerville Primary School in Salford, to provide pupils with additional support and inspiration.
Yasser Kalombo, 22, who grew up in Ardwick, said he had come to the scheme after he graduated and wanted to help pupils succeed expectations like he had.
“At school I was a ‘cheeky chappy’ with lots of potential but I got into the wrong crowd. School didn’t have high expectations of me,” he said.
“My teachers predicted I’d get two GCSEs above a C grade but I proved them wrong and got five; enough to do A Levels.
“I was already bucking the trend among my peers and friends and I realised that I was capable of achieving something with my life.
“I decided to go on to University but when I graduated, it felt wrong for me to go into a job where I couldn’t have an impact on the lives of young people growing up in a similar situation to me.
“I wanted to find something that would let me inspire young people who don’t believe in themselves. When I found City Year, I realised that I could be that role model I needed at school.”
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The volunteers spend Monday to Thursday supporting pupils in and out of the classroom, with Fridays dedicated to professional development through training and careers programmes.
Since coming to the UK in 2010, 500 young people have given 800,000 hours to support and inspire nearly 40,000 pupils in 30 schools.
Sophie Livingstone, Chief Executive of City Year UK said: “We are thrilled to be launching City Year Greater Manchester.
“This region’s young people have the energy, talent and determination to create profound change in their local community.
“What they won’t fully realise until next summer, is how life-changing giving a year will be for them as well.”
