Elevate

The Elevate programme is a seven-month outreach programme aimed at developing care leavers’ social and emotional learning and increasing their knowledge of post-16 pathways.

The programme also focuses on associated support for care leavers, with life skills such as financial literacy also being covered, as they approach the end of care. Only 14% of care-leavers currently attend university, compared to 47% of non-care-experienced students. We know that care experienced young people face multiple and complex barriers accessing higher education, including financial constraints, instability within foster placements, not receiving information, advice, and guidance about higher education, and often a belief that university is simply not for them.

Developed in partnership with AccessHE members Imperial, the London School of Management Education and CU London, the Elevate programme is a unique and truly collaborative programme. It draws on the expertise of care leaver and youth charities, mentoring specialists, community partners including Virtual Schools and local authorities, AccessHE members and current university students. This multi-partner approach provides wraparound support for care experienced young people in London as they begin to consider their post-16 education and career pathways.

The Elevate programme is made up of two strands. The first strand is delivered by education charity Chi Chi’s Young Minds. Participants are supported to develop life skills in areas such as financial literacy, cooking, networking, and creating a LinkedIn profile, as they approach the end of care and prepare for living independently – whether that’s at university, studying for an apprenticeship, or within the world of work. Participants also have the opportunity to visit both a university campus and a corporate organisation in the City.

The second strand consists of mentoring with a current university student; participants are carefully matched with mentors based on subject specialism, interests, and experience. Ahead of the mentoring, student mentors attend an interactive training programme led by care-leaver charity Become and mentoring organisation Brightside, ensuring mentors are aware of the rights and entitlements of care-experienced young people, the financial, wellbeing and education support they are entitled to, and what it means to be an impactful and supportive mentor.