No young person should be denied access to the opportunities they have fought so hard to earn. Sadly, for many homeless young people, this is the reality they face.
Having overcome so much to gain a university place, an apprenticeship or employment, basic costs such as equipment and travel can prove insurmountable barriers.
With the deadline for course entry drawing near, your gift today could prove to be a vital turning point in a young person’s life.
Arriving at Centrepoint helped Juliet turn her life around. “I never saw myself going to university,” she remembers, “but seeing how Centrepoint helps so many young people inspired me to do something similar.”
After two years of hard work Juliet was thrilled to receive a university place to study Social Work and Youth Work – but with no family to turn to for help the cost of essentials, like textbooks, put her hopes at risk.
Thanks to supporters like you, we were able to give Juliet a Bursary to help cover the cost of her textbooks, and now she’s full of excitement for the future.
To help Ana overcome the challenges she had faced as a child, we helped her channel her creative talent with a three-week placement at an advertising agency.
After the placement, she was thrilled to be offered a 15-month apprenticeship. But she needed expensive professional design software to carry on.
Thanks to supporters like you we were able to award her a Bursary to help her pay for this and her daily commute.
Now looking forward to her new career Ana says: “Centrepoint have given me the tools to help me get my life going and the space to recover from my past. They’ve changed my life.”
Taken into care at 13, Josh was determined to make a better future for himself but arriving at Centrepoint proved to be the turning point. “I knew I wanted to go to uni to study Sport and Exercise Science, but Centrepoint emboldened me to really go for it. They made me believe it was possible.”
After he earned his university place, supporters like you gave Josh a Bursary to help him pay for travel and food. He also received a Centrepoint Award in recognition of his incredible hard work.
Centrepoint supports over 14,000 homeless young people every year and our Bursary scheme is vital to helping them achieve independence and fulfill their potential. But this year, the Coronavirus crisis has created a shortfall in funding that threatens our services, including the essential Bursaries that so many young people need to pay for course fees, specialist equipment, course books and even travel and food. That’s why we really hope you can make Bursary gift before the 10 September deadline. If you choose to give after 10 September, your gift will still be gratefully received and will make a big difference – but we really are hoping to reach as many young people as possible before courses start this autumn.
Why not send your congratulations and a message of support to a young person receiving a Bursary this year? Knowing that someone believes in them makes a big difference to a young person with no family support network.
“If you earn a place at university or college or on an apprenticeship, we believe you should have the right to attend - just like everyone else.” - Seyi Obakin OBE, Chief Executive, Centrepoint
Since 2009, 1,575 young people have received Centrepoint Bursaries.
Last year you helped award 142 Bursaries to deserving young people.
A three-year university Bursary costs around £2,500.
As one of our most valued supporters, we’d like to offer you the chance to follow the progress of those benefiting from the Bursary scheme. Sign up here for your regular email updates from the young people whose futures you're helping to transform.
