27.09.10: PE leads launch of new London youth charity

The international youth volunteering charity, City Year London, officially launched in the capital today with over 50 young people beginning a ten-month programme at five inner city primary schools.

City Year, founded in America on the belief that young people can change the world, was introduced to the UK by leading venture philanthropy fund, the Private Equity Foundation (PEF) which works to create solutions to the NEET (young people not in education, employment or training) issue.

PEF has donated over £1 million development and start-up funding and leveraged nearly 800 hours of pro bono business expertise from the private equity community to support the charity. TowerBrook Capital Partners also co-invested £420,000, joined PEF on the Founding Committee and even provided City Year London with a temporary office while it looked for a permanent home.

Shaks Ghosh, Chief Executive of PEF, said: “We were looking for a charity which would empower young people from all backgrounds through the simple act of 'giving back'. As soon as we were first introduced to City Year in the US, we realized that we’d found an organization that achieves just that and far more. Its benefits are two-fold; the young people change the children that they work with and the children change the young people.”

City Year London’s young people, who are drawn from diverse backgrounds, will work as tutors, mentors and role models, helping 1,500 children to attain and achieve, as well as lead in-school and after-school programmes and community projects.

Easily identifiable thanks to their distinctive red jackets, they will gain leadership skills and an experience that will remain with them for life, while research from the US suggests that the schools they join could also gain:

  • In Cleveland, at two schools where City Year young people served, 72% of fourth graders scored at or above the proficiency level in maths, compared with a 52% City-wide average.
  • In Philadelphia, at one school 62% of students had been suspended. Within one year of being at the school, Principal Sharif El-Mekki said that “…City Year and their methods of community building and civic engagement had reduced the number to 27%.”

US Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton, who worked with City Year to expand the programme across the US and into South Africa, has sent a video message of support ahead of the formal launch.

Secretary Clinton said: “I thank City Year Chief Executive Sophie Livingstone and the entire City Year London Founding Committee for your dedication, vision, and leadership.”

Addressing the City Year London volunteers, she added: “By putting on that red jacket tonight, you embark on a year of hard work and sacrifice, but also one of great personal growth. As you help lift up children, schools and communities that you will be serving through your dedication and spirit, you will be a beacon of what young leaders can accomplish.”

Sophie Livingstone, Chief Executive of City Year London, said: “The time is right to harness the power of young people in the UK today. City Year London has a real opportunity to transform the opportunities open to young people and the children they mentor. We are incredibly grateful to the commitment of so many people, especially our Founding Partners – the people, and organisations who came together to bring City Year to London. Without their vision and belief, none of this would be possible.”

A further message of support has come from Mayor of London Boris Johnson, who is hosting City Year London’s launch at City Hall and whose Mayor’s Fund for London is one of the financial supporters of City Year London. He said: "There is nothing more important than developing the skills and improving the employability of young adults in London. I am therefore delighted that the Private Equity Foundation and my Mayor’s Fund are supporting this outstanding volunteering programme which encourages young Londoners to engage with their communities and help increase the academic achievement of school children.”

A word from new City Year volunteer, Nico, aged 20

“I was born in New York to Latin American parents but have lived in London since I was a year old. I’ve spent the summer doing work experience on trading desks at UBS and Franklin Templeton but was motivated to join City Year because of my love of teaching and working with children.

“I decided to take this year out of university, so when I found out about City Year, I realised that I had found pretty much my dream job for the year to come. I’ve been told that St. Anne’s is a school which is predominantly Latin American and I can’t wait to connect with the children through our shared culture and, hopefully, our love of football!”

For further information and images please contact:

About City Year London:

City Year London is a new scheme to give teams of volunteers, aged 18 to 25, the opportunity to spend a year mentoring in schools.

The primary schools that City Year London has launched in today are:

  • Hugh Myddleton Primary School, Islington
  • St Luke’s CofE Primary School, Islington
  • Sebright Primary School, Hackney
  • Whitmore Primary School, Hackney
  • St Anne’s RC Primary School, Tower Hamlets

City Year London is part of the international charity City Year, based in the US. Originally founded in Boston in 1998, City Year now operates in 20 locations in the US and in Johannesburg, South Africa. Since its inception, over 12,500 young people have completed more that 20 million hours of service, working with 1.2 million children.

The volunteers wear distinctive red jackets and become an integral part of the school community, based on the principle that young people can change the world. The schools in which City Year has a presence have had dramatically improved results. Attendance levels at schools rises, behaviour improves and ultimately academic achievement increases.

For more information please visit: www.cityyear.org.uk or the US website: www.cityyear.org

About the Private Equity Foundation (PEF)

The Private Equity Foundation (PEF) is a leading venture philanthropy fund which works with carefully selected charities to empower young people to reach their full potential. Its investments address the NEET (young people not in education, employment or training) issue and include not just grant funding but also pro bono expertise from the private equity community.

By sharing its members’ business skills, PEF can maximise the social return on its donors’ investments and help charities achieve a step change in their impact to ensure even more young people benefit.

Since its creation in 2006, PEF has created a portfolio of 17 charities and secured the backing of over 70 private equity firms and their advisers, including banks, law firms, accountancy firms, consultants and search firms.

About the TowerBrook Foundation

The TowerBrook Foundation, is a charitable foundation that is funded from the profits of TowerBrook Capital Partners (TowerBrook). TowerBrook Foundation is integral to the identity and culture of TowerBrook. The Foundation reinforces the firms’ ethos and furthers the values TowerBrook seeks to promote within its business and portfolio investments.

For more information please visit www.towerbrook.com/foundation