The core purpose of our business is to help put people on a path to a better everyday life. One of the ways we do that is partnering with organisations to promote lifelong learning opportunities that support children, young people, and adults to boost their education, skills and aspirations.
Throughout the pandemic we have continued to support National Numeracy, the National Literacy Trust and School-Home Support (SHS) among others.
Through our work with SHS, we fund practitioners in schools to work with young people and their families who need support to overcome challenges at home such as poverty, poor housing , domestic violence and other complex issues, which prevent them from even getting to school in the morning. In 2019 / 2020 year, SHS suported 9,765 people.
School Home Support 2019/2020 Facts
of the children SHS supported were persistently absent in their attendance
of the pupils SHS worked with in 2019 / 2020 were below the national attendance threshold of 95%
of pupils SHS worked with in mainstream schools improved their attendance
of parents we worked with in alternative educational settings became more engaged with their child's learning and school
For more information, check out the research paper from the Centre for Social Justice .
Social Impact Programme Manager Cathy Prior said, “We believe passionately in helping people to achieve their potential. Regular school attendance patterns encourage the development of other responsible patterns of behaviour, and generally better attendance is related to better grades. We knew our support would be more important than ever during the pandemic, as the charities and their users faced unprecedented challenges. We’re proud of the work we do, the relationships we’ve built and the people we’ve been able to support.”
Sir Kenneth Olisa, OBE, who is a Patron of SHS, wrote to thank us for our commitment to the charity during the pandemic. He said, “Nearly 70 per cent of our income is voluntarily donated, which is why I am compelled to write to thank PFG for all you have done to keep us firing on all cylinders during this time. Not only have you helped preserve our services throughout the pandemic, you have also enabled a regrouping in preparation for the ‘new normal’ post pandemic. As a result of PFG’s kindness, the life chances of many children will have survived what has probably been the most traumatic period of their young lives.”