The context in London for care leavers

There are an estimated 16,000 care leavers in London, aged between 18-25, higher than the national average. While some benefits are currently in place, such as council tax exemptions, free prescriptions, and half-price travel, much more can be done to support care leavers thriving beyond their statutory responsibilities. Some of the key issues they face include:

• Housing
• Employment and training
• Health, wellbeing & isolation
• Immigration status
• Engagement with the criminal justice system
• Isolation
• Moving from borough to borough

"Just 14% of children who have been in care went on to university in 2021-22, compared to 47 per cent of other young people" according to a report by Civitas

Our new programme for care leavers

This year the London Community Foundation has secured £150,000 of match funding for our Youth Futures Fund to support care leavers to thrive. This means that every donation you make to our Youth Futures Fund this year will be matched pound for pound. With your generosity, we know we can achieve £300,000, but we want to go further and raise a total of £400,000 for care leavers in our city.

Our ambition this year

Our Youth Futures Fund for 2024 will support care leavers to thrive. With your support, we aim to raise £400,000 to provide 5-7 community organisations with grants of up to £75,000 over three years. Our approach will be to fund projects that empower care leavers to navigate the critical factors of their transition into adulthood, including areas such as accommodation, education, and employment, and support their health and overall well-being. This could take the form of direct support for individual care leavers through a community organisation or the provision of services for them.

The benefits of supporting our Youth Futures Fund this year

• You can donate at any level and contribute to the Youth Futures Fund for London and your donation will be matched pound for pound.
• If you are an individual we can also claim gift aid on your donation, enabling you to make an even greater impact.
• Your donation will make a difference to young people leaving care in your local community, right here in London.
• Your donation will go a long way. Small, local community projects provide excellent value for money in terms of what they achieve with their resources.
• You will have the chance to hear stories and updates and receive impact reports about the projects and what your donation has achieved.
• You will be able to visit and connect with local projects helping young care leavers in London.
• You will have the chance to attend events and meet other supporters of the Youth Futures Fund and the community leaders who support care leavers across London.
• We can also attend your office, bringing your colleagues or networks closer to the impact they are making.

‘For the majority of young people, they receive support from their parents, also can build up social networks and gain work experience through their connections. There are a lack of connections for care leavers, and their horizons are limited because of their circumstances.’ Educational and work researcher

*Above quotes are from the New Philanthropy Capital (NPC) report; “Funding the journey from care”

Double your donation today

We are lucky to be part of a £3.6 million match-fund scheme funded by the Local Authorities’ Mutual Investment Trust (LAMIT), a shareholder of the UK’s biggest charities asset manager, CCLA. If you give to our Youth Futures Fund, the first £150,000 donated will be matched by CCLA Investments.

Your donation will be doubled. So donate today.