New IntoUniversity Hartlepool centre to provide opportunities for thousands of local young people
The centre was officially launched at a celebratory event yesterday, at which the ribbon was cut by local students.
Young people facing disadvantage from Hartlepool will have a significantly enhanced opportunity to attend higher education, thanks to a new children’s education centre which has been launched in the town.
The new education facility, which is funded by the John Armitage Charitable Trust and run by education charity IntoUniversity, celebrated an opening event at its centre in Grace Church Hartlepool on Tankerville Street.
The centre employs four full-time members of staff and will be used to offer after-school academic support, mentoring with local university students and professionals, in-school aspiration-raising workshops and enrichment and work experience opportunities.
The area of Hartlepool in which the centre is located is on the border between IMD (index of multiple deprivation) decile 1 and 2 areas, meaning it’s among the 10-20% most deprived places nationally. Nearby local progression rates into higher education are as low as just 28%, compared to 37% of all students nationally, making the area a prime location for an IntoUniversity centre.
Attending the event were students aged 7-18 who are set to benefit from the centre for the next academic year and beyond, with one of them delivering a speech.
Primary school students took part in a variety of activities during the event replicating the type of activities they will be engaging with in the year ahead. Secondary school students posed questions about future study and careers to attending guests.
IntoUniversity has a proven track record of improving attainment into higher education for students facing disadvantage, and currently supports over 60,000 young people each year at its 46 centres nationwide.
60% of students who attend IntoUniversity centres go on to progress to university, compared with 29% of students from similar backgrounds nationally.
The centre builds on IntoUniversity’s successful work in the North East, with the charity already running centres in Middlesbrough, Gateshead and Newcastle.
Dr Rachel Carr, Chief Executive and Co-Founder of IntoUniversity, said:
“We are really excited to be officially launching this new centre in Hartlepool, and are so energised by the experience we’ve had already working with the local young people, their families, schools and the wider community. This is a unique collaboration with the John Armitage Charitable Trust which sees them making a massive investment in the futures of young people in the town. We can’t wait to see what the future holds for the young people we work with, and thank everyone in the local community for their support in getting the centre up and running.”
Angela Kail from the John Armitage Charitable Trust said:
“The John Armitage Charitable Trust is excited to be working with IntoUniversity to bring more opportunities to the young people of Hartlepool. We believe that education is foundational in giving young people more chances in life, and so we’re excited to see what the young people do with these opportunities.”