Funded gap years to woo poor students
Hundreds of working class students will have “gap years” funded by the government, Chancellor of the Exchequer Gordon Brown pledged yesterday.
Students will have the option of taking a year out between college and university to gain valuable “life skills” when working as volunteers in the community.
Mr Brown – announcing the plan in a speech at the annual conference of the National Council of Voluntary Organisations in London – said the pilot scheme, based on the AmeriCorps project in the US, will initially help around 60 students.
A further 900 places are expected to come on stream next year.
Paid work – around £45 weekly with a £750 award for successfully completing the work – will cover caring for the disabled, teaching youngsters to read as well as environmental renovation.
The “multimillion-pound” gap year scheme will be included in the forthcoming Comprehensive Spending Review, when exact costs and figures are set out.
Mr Brown said yesterday: “We want to examine whether we can, through making it a national priority, engage a new generation of young people in serving their communities – and provide nationally and locally the means by which they find it easy to participate.
“The advantages for young people are clear – to develop their personal skills, discover new communities, become more active citizens.
“The benefits to our country are clear too: to expand volunteering, to create a culture of service and to support worthwhile community activity. And as in America there could be help with basic living expenses and help for university, college or business start-ups to follow.”
“I believe we have a goodwill mountain just waiting to be tapped.”
