City Gateway
Type | Registered charity |
---|---|
Focus | Employment, women's project |
Location |
|
Area served | Tower Hamlets |
Services | Youth work |
Revenue | £3.1 million (2011) |
Employees | 103 (2011) |
Website | www |
City Gateway is a charity that provides training for disadvantaged young people in the London Borough of Tower Hamlets.[2]
Services
City Gateway works with disadvantaged individuals through community events, drop-in youth clubs and apprenticeship schemes, and gives them the chance to develop their own business ideas. It runs women’s projects, youth training, a youth centre and a social enterprise hub.[3] It is one of the most popular youth projects in the area, and has successfully trained many young people who were formerly not in employment, education or training ("NEETs").[4] City Gateway's support for young people was described as "incredible" following several awards at the ERDF and ESF London Awards 2011.[5]
As of 2012[update] it employs 120 people,[6] and has about 60 corporate partners who provide apprenticeships, work experience or mentors.[7]
History
City Gateway was established by a group of people who worked in the City of London and wanted to support the local community. In 2003 it was a small organisation on the point of being wound up when Eddie Stride, a local man who had recently graduated from Cambridge University, joined as a youth outreach worker. Having secured approval from the trustees to keep it going for a year, he raised £40,000 from two corporate sponsors, and began training 15 "NEETs" in job-seeking skills. He was shortly promoted to CEO; by 2008 he had developed the organisation into one with an annual turnover of £1 million,[4] reaching £4.5 million by 2012.[8]
In July 2012 City Gateway won the Prime Minister's Big Society Award.[3]
The Evening Standard selected City Gateway as the partner in its "Ladder for London" campaign, launched in September 2012, asking commercial companies to take on more apprentices.[6][7]
References
- ^ Eddie Stride (2 November 2011). "How small charities can buck the downward trend". Guardian. Retrieved 27 September 2012.
- ^ "The City slickers sharing talent". The Times. 28 February 2010. Retrieved 26 September 2012.
- ^ a b "Tower Hamlets charity City Gateway wins Prime Ministers Big Society Award". number10.gov.uk. 19 July 2012. Retrieved 26 September 2012.
- ^ a b Alyssa McDonald (14 August 2008). "In east London – a model which could transform society". New Statesman. Retrieved 27 September 2012.
- ^ "ESF project inspires Evening Standard apprenticeships campaign". ESF Works. European Social Fund. 26 September 2012. Retrieved 27 September 2012.
- ^ a b David Cohen (24 September 2012). "Ladder for London: The Evening Standard's campaign to help the young and unemployed". Evening Standard. Retrieved 26 September 2012.
- ^ a b Kirsty Weakley (25 September 2012). "Evening Standard partners with London charity to increase apprenticeships". Civil Society. Retrieved 26 September 2012.
- ^ David Cohen (24 September 2012). "Human dynamo who turns young tearaways into valued City workers". Evening Standard. Retrieved 26 September 2012.