Microsoft word - procter and gamble donation to woking learning centre

Donation supports more successful futures for young people Young people who have struggled to get on in school have received a helping hand from local company, Procter & Gamble (P&G). The Weybridge-based business has made a major donation to the Surrey Care Trust and its education work. P&G, whose UK head office is at Broorlands, owns many of the world’s leading brands of consumer goods such as Ariel washing powder and Pampers nappies. Their company’s slogan is “Touching lives, improving life” and they demonstrate this by supporting good causes and making a difference to lives in all the local communities where they operate. The £4,600 donation to the Surrey Care Trust, a charity which focuses today on helping local people overcome disadvantage through education, will support its Woking Learning Centre. The centre runs a STEPS Under 16s programme for 14 to 16 year-olds who would otherwise no longer be in education or be falling way behind. Janette Butler, P&G’s Community Matters Manager, said: “P&G are committed to improving the life chances of children from disadvantaged backgrounds through improved educational opportunities. The intervention work that STEPS undertakes makes a huge difference to the life chances of these children”. The young people at STEPS are referred to the Surrey Care Trust by schools because they are failing to progress. Difficulties and unhappiness at school undermines confidence, and it is not unusual for young people who come to STEPS to be coping with other challenges in life. A referral to STEPS can seem like the end of the road but actually it is the start of a much more positive future. The STEPS programme offers a real second chance for young people to discover their abilities and begin to achieve their potential. They spend two years having a good experience of learning, rather than rebelling against or simply absenting themselves from education. The learning centre has a much more relaxed atmosphere and is on a smaller-scale than traditional school, with staff and volunteers able to give young people a high level of one to one attention. The key goal is for the young people to achieve some basic qualifications by the end of their time with STEPS. They work towards gaining a portfolio of nationally-accredited certificates and if they do well, their achievements will officially be recognised as the equivalent of two GCSEs. This improves their chances of finding a job and perhaps, even more importantly for many of them, reopens the door to mainstream education on a further education course at college. More than three out of four young people on the STEPS Under 16s programme move straight into a job or education or training when they leave. The Procter & Gamble donation is funding 10 days of education and training in various aspects of healthy living, including first aid, sexual health and relationships, drug awareness, and healthy eating and cooking. “We are delighted that P&G recognises the value of the work we do at STEPS and chosen to support it so generously,” said Surrey Care Trust Chief Executive Mrs Elaine Tisdall. “Without another chance to succeed, the prospects for these young people will be limited by low attainment, so STEPS is helping to put their futures on a firmer footing.” Caption: Janette Butler of Procter & Gamble (pictured back left) visited the Woking Learning Centre for a first aid session. Also pictured is Mary Shield of the British Red Cross, Craig Strobl* and Jessica Rogers and Natasha Stephen, seated front with Resuscitation Annie, the dummy used to teach the young people the CPR emergency technique. *(NOTE TO SUBS – Strobl is the CORRECT SPELLING) Press contact at the Surrey Care Trust: Jennifer Britt, 01483 412762, jennifer.britt@surreycaretrust.org.uk About the Surrey Care Trust STEPS Under 16s is one of a several STEPS education and support programmes for young people, run by the Surrey Care Trust. The charity runs other training and education programmes for people of all ages. It also runs a hardship fund, Crisis Grants, helping people in need across Surrey About Procter & Gamble in the UK and Ireland Four billion times a day, P&G (NYSE:PG) brands touch the lives of people around the world. The company has one of the strongest portfolios of trusted, quality, leadership brands, including Pampers®, Ariel®, Always®, Pantene®, Mach3®, Fairy®, Pringles®, Lenor®, Iams®, Crest®, Oral-B®, Actonel®, Duracell®, Olay®, Head & Shoulders®, Wella®, Gillette®, Braun® and Fusion®. The P&G community includes approximately 135,000 employees and just over 6,000 work in the UK and Ireland. Please visit http://www.uk.pg.com for the latest news and information about P&G and its brands. P&G is committed to improving life for children in need throughout the world and each year improves life for more than 50 million children in need via our global cause, Live, Learn and Thrive. Last year, P&G’s charitable contribution in the UK & Ireland was £3.28 million.

Source: http://www.surreycaretrust.co.uk/documents/procterandgambledonationtoWokingLearningCentre_000.pdf