The YHA saw off competition from rivals including PGL, Kingswood and Action for Employment to clinch the 11.5m two-year contract, which is funded by the Big Lottery Fund's Young People's Fund.
Get Real will offer residential places to 21,000 young people in England, up from the 3,600 places available during the programme's pilot schemes over the past two summers. It will cost each young person 100 to attend, although low-income families will only be charged 25.
The week-long residentials will include outdoor activities, music, arts and drama. The programme will be run at 14 of the YHA's 227 youth hostels in England and Wales, including locations in the Lake District, London and north Wales.
Esther O'Callaghan, chair of the Young People's Fund, said: "All the applications were really strong, but the YHA had the vision and values that met our needs.
It also had a well-established infrastructure." A promotional campaign for Get Real will start in March using text-messaging, emails, advertising, youth clubs, schools and Connexions to reach young people.
Tim Diggle, head of fundraising at the YHA, said: "The plan is to have two groups - 11 to 14 and 14 to 17 - so the young people will be close in age. Voluntary accreditation will also be built in so young people can achieve a certificate of personal effectiveness from ASDAN."
www.yha.org.uk.
