The Aspire programme is completely free for schools and young people. As it is provided for free, there is a significant cost to Aspire. It costs around £680 per young person to put them through the Aspire programme per year. Currently, we work with over 350 young people each week across 29 schools.
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In Northern Ireland around a fifth of children live in relative poverty. An unimaginable number, that frankly seems quite unbelievable in 2024. Unfortunately, it’s a very real number and young people and families across Northern Ireland know this reality all to well.
The long term effects of poverty can be extremely difficult to deal with, we can only speak with authority on how this impacts young people academically as that’s where our expertise lies.
The evidence shows that the gap in attainment between children growing up in poverty and their peers starts early and lasts throughout school. But the time they reach primary school, children from low-income families are already up to a year behind middle-income children in terms of cognitive skills.
For those who are Free School Meals, their achievement rate of five or more GCSEs at grades A* to C is 49.5%. Their peers, who are non Free School Meals eligible, their achievement rate is 24% higher. This a significant gap, and it’s why Aspire exists today, we believe all children should have an equal chance at education, regardless of their economic background.
