National Citizen Service participants
The government names 19 providers for its summer volunteering scheme for 16-year-olds next year
The Prince’s Trust has pulled out of providing places for the government’s National Citizen Service scheme.
The young people’s charity confirmed that it did not bid to be a supplier for next year’s scheme, which will offer up to 30,000 school leavers the opportunity to take part in six-week programmes to boost their community involvement. The government has allocated £37m to the scheme for 2012.
The charity is one of three that provided placements in this year’s pilot that were not included in the initial list of 19 providers for the 2012 programme, published by the Cabinet Office yesterday.
The two other charities omitted are environmental education charity the Field Studies Council and the Norwich City Community Sports Foundation.
A spokeswoman for The Prince’s Trust, which provided 885 places in 2011, said it had decided against bidding to take part in the second year of the programme in order to focus on its existing work.
"We are still supporting the NCS scheme, but given the high levels of youth unemployment at the moment and the real need to help the most vulnerable young people into jobs, The Prince’s Trust has decided to focus on its core activity of supporting the UK’s most disadvantaged young people into work, education and training," she said.
A spokesman for the Field Studies Council, which provided 540 places for the 2011 programme, confirmed that it had not been awarded a contract for 2012.
"We are looking forward to continued involvement in NCS as a residential provider, working with one or more of the successful providers announced by the Cabinet Office today," a statement from the charity said.
Norwich City Community Sports Foundation, which was awarded 490 places in 2011, was not available for comment.
Ten providers have been selected to run the NCS programme for the first time next year.
They are:
Changemakers
Envision
Future Foundations Training
Global Action Plan
Jewish Lads’ and Girls’ Brigade
New College Nottingham
Petroc (formerly North Devon College and East Devon College)
Salford Foundation
The University of the First Age
Your Consortium (North Yorkshire)
Nine providers will be running schemes for a second year. They are:
Bolton Lads and Girls Club
Catch22 NCS Partnership
Connexions Cumbria
Lincolnshire & Rutland Education Business Partnership
Safe in Tees Valley
The Challenge Network
The Football League Trust
v and the Dame Kelly Holmes Legacy Trust
NCS South West Consortium led by Young Devon
The government is going ahead with plans to make up to 30,000 places available for 16-year-olds next summer despite the fact that almost a quarter of places on this year’s scheme were not filled. Earlier this month, the Nick Hurd, the Minister for Civil Society, said only 8,500 out of 11,000 spaces available were taken up in 2011.
The Cabinet Office plans to announce further NCS providers shortly.
