Mentoring Awards

Tuesday saw Young Lives Foundation honour the achievement of several young people in Thanet.

An awards afternoon was held in the elegant surroundings of Northdown House, Margate, to celebrate the continued success of mentoring that helps young people and their families turn their lives around.

Also gathered at Northdown House were parents, volunteer mentors, staff and also officials from Kent County Council, who commission Young Lives Foundation to undertake the mentoring engagements.

Those young people honoured have all benefited from working with volunteer mentors, to achieve objectives to improve their lives. These objectives include building up confidence and self-esteem, undertaking new hobbies or interests, increasing attendance at school and improving relationships.

One parent said, “If it wasn’t for YLF, I dread to think where my child would be right now!”

Following a few words of thanks by our CEO Stephen Gray and Matt Algar, KCC, the young people were presented with certificates of achievement and gift vouchers by our special guest Cllr. John Edwards, Mayor of Margate. The young people then presented bouquets of flowers to their mothers, which caused some amusement with the audience, as one young person was reluctant to hand the flowers to his mother.

After the formalities had been completed the assembled crowd mingled and chatted with each other, whilst tucking into a delicious buffet prepared by staff at Northdown House.

Our thanks go to everyone who attended and who has worked hard to make this project a success.

Matt Algar said, "It was a pleasure to be there and celebrate their success. I look forward to hearing about the continued success of your teams work."