Press Release

BAA Gatwick gives local students an opportunity of a lifetime - India on the horizon

 

18 July 2006

The Fulcrum Challenge will offer 28 local students aged 16 – 18 with the opportunity of a lifetime and an exceptional learning experience which will culminate in an overseas trip to undertake a community project in India. BAA Gatwick Fulcrum programme is funded through

BAA Communities Trust and is all about investing in the leaders of the future through a series of dynamic learning experiences, designed to complement their existing studies. 28 students from local secondary schools around Gatwick will be given the opportunity to develop their personal confidence, teamwork and leadership skills through fundraising, a development workshop and an overseas community project in India. The experience will give the students the opportunity to achieve a formal qualification which is an ASDAN Certificate of Personal Effectiveness Level 3. ASDAN is the Awards Scheme Development Network and this certificate is equivalent to an A grade AS level or 70 UCAS points for university.

The charity set up by John Hunt, Chief Executive, in 1995 is all about investing in leaders of the future, giving them an in-sight into citizenship and global responsibility. The students learning will focus on self responsibility, working with others, problem solving, improving own learning and performance, time management, researching, risk management, communications and active listening.

One of the major milestone is for each student to raise £1,950 which will go towards the funding the trip and to supporting the community project in North East India on the India / Myanmar (Burma) border. The overseas field trip will take place in February 2007 and the team will spend two weeks working with the local community to rebuild a school. Gatwick’s partner schools who are taking part in this challenge include; St Wilfrid’s Catholic School and Thomas Bennett, Crawley, Sackville School, East Grinstead, The College of Richard Collyer, Horsham, Chichester High School, Chichester, Rosebery School, Epsom.

The Fulcrum Challenge will also provide an opportunity for three BAA Gatwick employees to be involved as Team Leaders, providing support, mentoring and leadership to the students in the run up to and during the overseas trip as well as providing personal development for their own careers.

Julie Ayres, Community Relations Manager and one of the Team Leaders, commented on the new Gatwick programme; “Fulcrum’s objectives are so closely aligned with our strategy to support education to employment and to giving students life long skills. I am delighted that we can support 28 students from across the region on what will be one of Gatwick’s flagship community programmes. This will be a real journey for them but it also plays a part in our commitment to investing in our employees by providing personal development opportunities. The global focus of this programme further highlights Gatwick’s position as one of the leading international airports bringing communities together.”

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For further information on Fulcrum see www.fulcrum-challenge.org.uk

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