NESCol and Aberdeen Foyer team up to help tackle child poverty
January 26, 2021
North East Scotland College has teamed up with Aberdeen Foyer to deliver Foyer Families, a partnership programme tackling child poverty through online family learning.
The Foyer Families Programme seeks to build on a successful pilot programme at the College’s Fraserburgh Campus and hopes to replicate this success in Aberdeen.
The programme has been funded by the Scottish Funding Council’s (SFC’s) Tackling Child Poverty Fund. Last year the Scottish Government made up to £400,000 available to the college sector from the Tackling Child Poverty Fund. Given the impact of Covid-19 colleges were encouraged to work with partners to increase support to young people and families who need it most.
The Family Learning and Employability programme seeks to support parents with young children by developing their personal confidence and helping them to gain accredited qualifications as well as helping them learn how to further support a child’s learning and play.
Leona McDermid, Chief Executive at Aberdeen Foyer, said: “One in five families in Scotland are living in poverty and the pandemic is only exacerbating this. Developed with input from parents themselves, Foyer Families offers parents and carers a safe supportive space to identify and set in motion goals that can alleviate their immediate situations whilst improving confidence to move into further learning and employment that benefit the whole family.
“The Foyer greatly values working with NESCol to develop Foyer Families, opening up a different way of accessing and experiencing accredited learning in the community and supporting parents to make their own routes out of poverty.”
Duncan Abernethy, Director of Business Development at NESCol, said: “Partnership working is vital to the work the College does in supporting the communities we serve and we’re delighted to be collaborating with Aberdeen Foyer and the Scottish Funding Council to deliver this initiative. The circumstances of the past year have been incredibly challenging and the impact on many families has been significant. Providing tailored support on a local level will help individuals and families take the first steps towards a brighter future.”
James Dunphy, SFC’s Director for Access, Learning and Outcomes, said: “It is fantastic to see NESCol and Aberdeen Foyer work together to bring a hugely impressive project to their local community. Whatever their background, all children deserve the chance to reach their full potential and this project will work hard to enhance the support available to families across North East Scotland.
“As Scotland faces up to the challenge of Covid-19, it is more important than ever that we tackle poverty and disadvantage wherever it exists. As part of our commitment to making education more accessible, SFC is delighted to fund this work and to enable North East Scotland College to deliver much needed support within its local community.”
Aberdeen Foyer is currently seeking families to take part in the programme. Parents of children aged 0-12 who are looking to develop personal confidence and gain accredited qualifications are encouraged to join the online programme. IT equipment can also be provided. Final dates for the programme are still to be confirmed. Call 07880 031878 or email bryanm@aberdeenfoyer.com if you are interested in taking part.