• Swindon & Wiltshire Social
• Tuesday July 23 2024
• Author Name: Peter Davison

Motor dealer Dick Lovett commits £100,000 to Wiltshire Community Foundation’s Care Leavers programme

Prestige motor dealer Dick Lovett has pledged £100,000 to Wiltshire Community Foundation‘s Care Leavers programme.

The programme will support care leavers in Wiltshire and Swindon, where the regional motor dealer – whose brands include Aston Martin, Ferrari, Land Rover, Porsche, BMW and MINI – is headquartered.

The Care Leavers programme is a new £3.6 million match fund national scheme, involving 17 community foundations.

The initiative will run over a three-year period and is managed by UK Community Foundations.

The project is funded by the Local Authorities’ Mutual Investment Trust, a shareholder of the UK’s biggest Charity Asset manager, the CCLA.

In April, Wiltshire Community Foundation was selected to receive £40,000 a year for three years from the scheme, which needed to be match-funded.

The Lovett Foundation, the charitable arm of Dick Lovett, has agreed to donate £100,000 towards the project, across a five-year period.

Established in 2019, The Lovett Foundation supports children in care and young adults leaving care across the South West and Wales, giving them assistance, life skills and experiences which will contribute to a brighter future.

When setting up their foundation, the executive team at Dick Lovett wanted to focus their charitable giving on an area of need, and where there is a current gap in financial support, and formally partnered with Wiltshire Community Foundation in March to help care leavers across the county.

There were 46,000 care leavers between 17 and 21 years old in England alone in 2022. Each year, young people leaving the care system immediately meet a range of challenges that their peers might not experience.

Deficiencies in transitional and practical support mean that care leavers are often less likely to get the help they need to make a fresh start as a young adult.

Gaps in support have been found when it comes to relationships and mentoring, education, employment and mental health.

A spokesperson for Dick Lovett said: “We are delighted to start our partnership with Wiltshire Community Foundation.

“It will help us to direct the money that we raise through fundraising activities to the correct places, in particular to help support young people leaving the care system.

“Together we can make sure that they get the opportunities that they deserve.”

Wiltshire Community Foundation’s philanthropy director, Oliver Selfe said: “We are thrilled to have partnered up with Dick Lovett to deliver our Care Leaver’s programme.

“This is an outstanding commitment from them to agree to help fund the project for five years and will mean that the programme can have a greater and more sustained impact. We are extremely grateful for their generosity.

“Care leavers are unfortunately faced with numerous challenges to overcome, and it is absolutely vital that they have access to the same opportunities as their peers.

“Thanks to the support from the Lovett Foundation, as well as the funding secured from UK Community Foundations and LAMIT, we can offer care leavers greater support and more opportunities.”

In partnership with Wiltshire Council and Swindon Borough Council, Wiltshire Community Foundation’s Care Leaver Programme will be working towards increasing the opportunities for mentoring and coaching for care leavers.

The programme aims to improve the employment opportunities for care leavers by increasing the numbers entering higher and further education and vocational training by expanding our university bursary and vocational support programmes.

It will also increase the opportunities for care leavers to have fun and experience new adventures by working with local providers.

Pictured: Wiltshire Community Foundation’s programme director Heather Kiel (far left) and philanthropy director Oliver Selfe (centre) with Victoria Bond, Olivia Fearon and Emma Newton from The Lovett Foundation