DUTY TO RECOGNISE LOCKDOWN IMPACT ON VULNERABLE YOUNG PEOPLE

Following the Government’s announcement of a third lockdown, and a return to remote learning for millions of young people across the UK, youth education charity Jon Egging Trust believes that the pressure on young people continues to mount. 

For the past decade, Jon Egging Trust has worked to support some of the UK’s most vulnerable young people; young people who face significant life challenges which threaten their futures and put them at high risk of dropping out of education. With each successive lockdown, the pressures on the young people we support have grown, and – for some – their short-term educational goals and longer-term career prospects feel as if they have spiralled even further out of reach.

As a charity, we will be working harder than ever over the next five weeks – and beyond – to support the young students enrolled in our learning programmes. Never has our core ethos of achieving through adversity been more pertinent.

CEO Dr Emma Egging says: “Last month, Amanda Spielman, England’s chief inspector of schools said that the invisibility of vulnerable children during the pandemic should be a “matter of national concern’. I would echo this sentiment and say too that we have a collective responsibility to recognise that many of those who have been impacted most severely by the successive lockdowns have been our most vulnerable youngsters. The impact of the disruption to their education, and their detachment from the social, support and safeguarding network that schools represent is something that we have a duty to address.

“We will continue to work remotely with our JET schools and Blue Skies students throughout this latest lockdown to offer support, motivation and inspiration. We would also like to reach out to new teachers and schools who feel their students might benefit from the mentorship, confidence-building and personal development opportunities that our unique Blue Skies support programmes offer.”

Want to find out more about our programmes and how we can support schools and teachers – please drop us an email info@joneggingtrust.org.uk

Video: Listen to our CEO Emma Egging’s latest video report here