The aims

Helping unemployed young people gain practical skills and the confidence to find long-term paid work.

The story

Barclays Luton-based Commercial Bank team supports a charity which encourages disadvantaged young people in the area to train in garden design and construction.
In 2007, Barclays donated more than £18,600 to Groundwork Luton and South Bedfordshire, to fund a 20-week programme designed to offer potential and convicted young offenders the opportunity to learn valuable skills.

A team of seven volunteers from Barclays also gave 19 hours of their time to provide the 14-to-18-year-olds with advice on budgeting, to improve their financial management abilities for when they ultimately gain employment.

As part of the project, the participants transformed a previously unsafe and unused area into an attractive garden, now used on a daily basis by staff and students from crime reduction organisation Nacro.

Better still, feedback reveals the young people who took part have benefited from increased confidence, improved teamworking, better money management techniques and skills they can take into the workplace.

Results to date

Of the 20 young people involved in the programme, 10 have gained qualifications in first aid, along with valuable advice on personal finance.