First recipients of DCMS enrichment partnership announced

The NCS Trust and The Duke of Edinburgh’s Award were named as delivery partners for the governments Enrichment Partnerships Pilot (EPP) in November and have revealed the first 14 organisations to take part.

The grantees have been identified to benefit from bespoke support and fund a small number of staff to deliver positive impact activities.   

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In focused areas of England, around 200 secondary schools will soon have improved access to “quality enrichment activities” funded by the Department for Culture, Media and Sport and the Department for Education pilot.

The identified areas will benefit from a system change as part of the government’s Levelling Up agenda, according to DCMS.

The agenda identified 55 communities where school outcomes are the weakest and require additional intensive support over the next 10 years.

The EPP will provide funding to offer a wide range of activities to improve student wellbeing, as a pilot of the initiative including sports, art, drama, outdoor experiences, volunteering and more.

Grantees include:

• North West: Manchester City Council, Youth Fed, PIE, Altus Education, Salford City Council and Children’s University.

• North East: NE Youth, Youth Focus: North East, Durham Wildlife Trust and Groundwork North East.

• East of England: UK S Futures, Portland College, Villiers Park and Notts County Foundation.

In the coming months, further grantees in the North East and East of England are expected to join the EPP, after application windows are reopened.

Chief executive of the Duke of Edinburgh’s Award, Ruth Marvel, said: “These exciting partnerships open the door of possibility for thousands of young people in some of England’s most disadvantaged areas.

“They will improve links between schools and their local communities to give young people access to experience that will boost their well-being and help them develop crucial skills and grow in self-belief and resilience.”

The organisation encourages young people to volunteer their time and build up their skills to develop life-long confidence and passion for talents they didn’t know they had.

The Duke of Edinburgh’s Award is delivered across schools, colleges, community organisations, hospitals, and prisons, all over the UK, with more than 550,000 young people taking part every year.

The NCS Trust offers a way for young people to grow their confidence, independence and skills, by providing a range of experiences that connect them with their wider society and prepare them for life and work outside of school through its National Citizen Service.

More than 120,000 young people benefitted from the service in the past year.