THE Dame Kelly Holmes Trust is celebrating its tenth anniversary this year with a grant of £400,000 from the People’s Postcode Lottery.
The funds have allowed the Trust to expand its reach within Scotland and Wales through its Get On Track programme, and launch a school-based transformational programme called On Track To Achieve in Scotland.
President and founder Dame Kelly, a double Olympic gold medallist, attended a gala evening at the Royal Botanic Garden in Edinburgh and said: “We are very grateful for the support of the players of People’s Postcode Lottery.
“The Trust specifically targets the hardest to reach in society, and this funding will enable us to help more young people facing disadvantage across the United Kingdom.”
On Track to Achieve is a seven-month programme based in schools, in which mentors work with groups of young people aged 14-19.
The programme helps to develop their confidence, emotional resilience and teamwork and enables them to reflect on their aspirations.
The participants have an athlete mentor to help them achieve set targets, keep an account of their development, work as a team with others in the school and be part of a community project that will make a positive impact locally.
Get On Track, which is led by world-class athletes over a 14-month period, is aimed at young people aged 16 to 25 who are facing disadvantage.
The programme helps them realise the attitudes and behaviours they need to make long-term positive life choices: Determination, focus, resilience, motivation and confidence.
The Trust has now received £1.7million in total from the People’s Postcode Lottery. Since launching in 2008, the Trust has reached over 300,000 young people from diverse backgrounds.
