Aspire NI exists to work with children in Northern Ireland in poverty to help close the educational attainment gap that exists between rich and poor.
At Aspire, we believe that where a child is born shouldn’t dictate their future. We believe that each child deserves an equal opportunity to achieve in school.
The Educational Attainment Gap, is the the gap that exists between rich and poor. If you are born in the UK, into a low-income family, you are less likely to achieve in school. This means you will have fewer employment opportunities. This means the cycle will continue from generation to generation.
Aspire NI as an organisation, consists mainly of 3 core elements. Aspire Sessions, Aspire Academy and Camp Aspire. Aspire NI’s main service, is Aspire Sessions. When a young person is enrolled in the Aspire Programme, they can avail of all that Aspire offers completely free of charge.
Aspire Sessions, we create a supportive and helpful learning environment for young people.
We run Aspire Academy because we believe that your parent's wage, should not limit your options in hobbies and skills.
The highlight of our year is our summer camp. This past summer, we had our 6th Camp Aspire. We had young people from both nationalist and unionist areas.
Less than 50% of young people who are eligible for free school meals across the country achieve more than 5GCSEs at grade C or above. However, 89% of young people on the Aspire programme achieve 5 GCSEs at C Grade or above
Information Pack
87% Young people participating in the Aspire programme achieve a grade C or above in more than five GCSE subjects. In contrast, fewer than 50% of those eligible for free school meals who are not on the Aspire programme, attain the same level of academic achievement.
350+ young people take part in the Aspire programme each week.
25+ Schools currently benefit weekly from the Aspire program.We hope to provide our service to more schools
