Theresa Villiers, MP for Chipping Barnet, met Barnet teenagers completing the National Citizenship Service programme this weekend at Barnet and Southgate College. 60 students took part, from schools such as Friern Barnet School, Ashmole Academy and East Barnet School.
The National Citizenship Service (NCS) was created by former Prime Minister, David Cameron. It is a summer programme which aims to develop confidence and leadership in 15-17 year olds, encouraging teenagers to work together, explore their talents and deliver a project to help their local community. The young people taking part spend a week at an activity centre living away from home, followed by a week in a university-style environment developing skills such as sport, media, photography, music and more. They then pitch social action projects to local community or business leaders, aka ‘dragons’.
Theresa has been visiting summer NCS projects in Barnet for several years. After meeting Barnet NCS students on their final day, she said: “This was an excellent event. I watched teams of young people pitch ideas to a panel of ‘dragons’ for funding for social action projects including fundraising for a ‘bug hotel’ at the Barnet Countryside Centre and a new scented garden at the Rosa Morrison Day Centre.”
“The teams were incredibly impressive and I encourage many more to take part next year. The NCS is a really inspiring example of a project which helps young people achieve their potential and gain skills which will help them go on to success in life. I remember when David Cameron first came up with this idea many years ago and it is always great to see it in action”.