Community Mentoring

The Easton Jubilee Trust has been running a community mentoring project since January of 2003.

The mentoring project exists to tackle the issue of youth disaffection amongst Easton young people. Mentors now work with young people both in the context of a drop-in Senior Homework club for Somalis and also in more informal contexts when problem issues can be discussed and addressed.

The overall purpose of this project is to motivate young people to academic, social and personal achievement. We believe that the motivation for achievement can be significantly influenced by the presence of a long term mentor who not only encourages the young person in his or her school work but also seeks to expand their horizons and develop an appreciation of different cultures and outlooks on life.

Statistics show that Mentoring really works. A recent survey revealed that young people who were mentored were:

• 46% Less likely to start using drugs 
• 27% Less likely to start using alcohol 
• 32% Less likely to hit someone
• 52% Less likely to miss school

The main "players" in the project are the individual mentors. The mentors are recruited on the basis of age and academic achievement and are primarily men and women in their 20's who have some experience of higher education and of the world of work and who have demonstrated not only their good character but also a willingness to invest in the life of a young person.