More than 500 young people apply to join City Year
More than 500 young people have now applied to join City Year to ‘give up a year and change the world.’
City Year recruits passionate 18-25 year olds to work on a full time but voluntary basis in inner city schools.
This week we reached a recruitment milestone of having received the 500th application to serve with us.
City Year CEO, Sophie Livingstone said:
“This is fantastic. It shows that more and more young people are passionate about helping to transform the lives of children in disadvantaged communities.
“Despite all the negative messages and stereotypes we hear about young people today, we believe there is a huge reserve of untapped potential within London’s youth.
“There is a very willing and very able generation of young people that are up for giving something back to their communities. They up for being challenged out of their comfort zones, want to be good citizens and want to inspire children as role models and mentors.
“Many of our applicants are taking a break from education or they are postponing future careers because they feel drawn to make a difference.
“The Government should be optimistic about the level of interest we are receiving because it tells us something positive about the appetite for a more ambitious National Citizen Service programme. We think young people want to go on serving their communities as they grow into their late teens and twenties – and they should be recognised for it.”
City Year Recruitment Manager, Eric Mtungwazi said:
“City Year London is still quite new, so to have received 500 applications to join the programme is incredible. We are finding that really bright, talented and inspiring young people are looking for something unique to do and City Year offers that opportunity. Our policy is to intentionally recruit a diverse mix of people to join our team and we think 18-25s are attracted to an organisation that offers the opportunity of meeting new people from different walks of life.
“No other organisation can deliver the double-barreled impact of transforming the lives of children, but also developing the confidence, skills and career prospects of the people that join us.
“City Year is growing fast so we need more recruits every year. We look for passion, teamwork, resilience, ambition, professionalism and leadership. Young people that can demonstrate these qualities or have potential to grow as leaders will have a great experience joining City Year.”
On a visit to Sebright Primary School, Hackney where a City Year team volunteers full time, Children’s Minister, Tim Loughton MP said:
“City Year is a brilliant organisation. It recruits fantastic young people and unleashes their idealism and passion to help children at school. I am very impressed by the dedication and professionalism of the corps members. They are clearly having a big impact on the schools they are working at.”
City Year now has 80 full time corps members serving in schools across inner London. During our latest recruitment cycle, we received five applications for every single place available on our team.
NOTES TO EDITORS:
This September City Year started its second academic year working in London schools. The charity was first established in 1988 in America where it operates in 21 cities across the US and has the backing of President Barack Obama. City Year London currently works in ten schools in Hackney, Tower Hamlets, Islington, Brixton, Tottenham and Westminster. It has 80 ‘corps member’ volunteers working in schools or on civic engagement projects. City Year plans to grow rapidly across London and then expand into other areas of the UK in the next two years.
As well as the amazing experience working in a school, City Year volunteers also receive more than 300 hours of dedicated leadership development and coaching, £100 per week for expenses, eligibility for £1000 Citizen Service Award and all travel expenses are covered. All of our corps members are matched to a mentor from one of our corporate sponsors. But more than all of this, our volunteers benefit from a life changing experience working with idealistic and dynamic colleagues in a superb team environment. Volunteers make friends, build relationships with professional networks and gain a cutting edge in today’s competitive labour market.
City Year London’s major funders include: The Private Equity Foundation, Credit Suisse, the Esmee Fairbairn Foundation, Goldman Sachs Gives, MAN Group Charitable Trust, The Mayor’s Fund for London, SHINE, TowerBrook, v, ARAMARK, National Grid and Barclays Capital.
For more information please visit our website or find us on Facebook and Twitter.
For media inquiries, please contact Lee Bailey on 07785710936 or Alex Lowen on 0207 014 2690. We are happy to arrange interviews with any of our staff or volunteers. Media access to the schools we work in can also be arranged by us with prior consent of the head teacher. We have a photo library on a Flickr account found at http://www.flickr.com/photos/cityyearlondon/
