Baroness Sharp of Guildford, Vice Chair of the All Party Parliamentary Group on Foyers, hosted Foyer's University Support Project celebration, held in the House of Lords. Among the people attending were Higher Education Minister, Bill Rammell MP, and 12 young people from Foyers who have benefited from the Foyer bursary.
A total of 500 Foyer residents have benefited from the Foyer University Support Project since 2002, which provides each successful applicant with £1,000 per year from the Government's Access to Learning Funds, as well as personal support. The Foyer University Support Project is run with support from the Nuffield Foundation and the JP Morgan Fleming Educational Trust.
The Bursary is intended to cover students' accommodation costs over the long vacation - on the assumption that Foyer students do not have the use of a parental home in the vacations. The purpose of the project is to increase recruitment and improve retention figures for young people from Foyers moving into higher education.
Soleiman Aria, 22, an Afghan refugee, is one of the young people to have benefited from the Foyer University Support Project. He arrived in the UK five years ago, barely speaking a word of English. Two years ago he was accepted to King's College, Cambridge to study medicine, thanks to the support he received from Jupiter House Foyer, in Hayes, Middlesex.
Speaking at the event, Mr Aria said: "The Foyer University Support Project has been a lifeline during my studies at university. Being able to study medicine at King's College, Cambridge is a dream come true, and completing my course would be so much more difficult without the financial and personal support this project gives me."
The project is helping people from non-traditional backgrounds to enter higher education:
For more information about the Foyer bursary, please go to the website: www.giveusachance.net.
Virgin Megastores announced a new partnership with UK charity Foyer. Titled The RE*Generation, the initiative aims to give disadvantaged young people aged 16-25 the opportunity to gain experience in the music and entertainment industry.
Starting with a three-month trial at Manchester Foyer in Hulme, The RE*Generation will involve a work experience and development programme and life skills coaching with Virgin Megastores, from February 2007. Including a variety of music focused opportunities, music workshops and open mike sessions, the course will also allow participants to gain hands-on experience in the PR and marketing departments for Virgin Megastores.
A 'Life Skills' toolkit has been developed specifically for the programme by Personnel and Development, which aims to provide those taking part with basic skills in presentation, communication, interviews, and CV writing. Virgin Megastores has also committed to fundraising for Foyer and will now display collection tins and raise funds through events based at the Virgin Megastores' new store in the Arndale Centre, Manchester.
If the three-month trial is successful, the programme will be rolled out to the top 30 Virgin Megastores across the UK.
After a 53-year-old resident killed himself with a sawn-off shotgun, security is to be reviewed at a Carlisle hostel for homeless men. The victim had lived in the John Street Hostel in Caldewgate for two or three weeks. His body was found in his room by hostel staff. Friends expressed surprise that the former electrician may have killed himself.
This was the first firearms incident at the hostel, where the rules bar residents from having drugs, drink, or any kind of weapon. A spokesperson for Carlisle City Council, which runs the hostel, confirmed that security would be reviewed.
