Abbey People, Cambridge Ahead, Cambridge City Council and The Brilliant Club Launch Groundbreaking Initiative

21/08/2024

Abbey People, Cambridge Ahead, Cambridge City Council, and The Brilliant Club are thrilled to announce the launch of a groundbreaking project, Abbey Parent Power. This initiative is set to tackle educational inequality in Abbey ward, empowering parents in the local area to create positive change for their children and community and take advantage of the exciting job and career opportunities on their doorstep.

The Index of Multiple Deprivation shows that Abbey ward is especially relatively deprived in terms of income, education and employment, despite Cambridge being home to world class education institutions and industry leaders. Access to further education and apprenticeships are limited, and in Abbey ward, 27.1% of young people attend university (POLAR4), compared to the national average of 39%.

Abbey Parent Power is designed to address this inequality, supporting parents in a local area to work collectively to campaign against educational inequalities and create positive change. It does this by training parents in community organising in partnership with Citizens UK. By developing education champions within the community, Parent Power ensures that parents and carers can easily access the information and guidance they need to support their children in navigating education and careers.

“We are excited to launch Abbey Parent Power with a such a fantastic team of local partners,” said Jimmy Pickering, Director of Communities, The Brilliant Club. “Parents and carers in Abbey must be at the forefront of the drive to improve access to opportunities in their area. Abbey Parent Power will ensure that this is the case. I’m looking forward to seeing what action families take to create meaningful change for their local community.”

Nicky Shephard, CEO of Abbey People, said: “Abbey People exists to make Abbey a better place and one of the ways we do this is by responding to identified needs within the local community. We are thrilled to be working alongside dedicated partners to tackle the educational inequality in our ward. Educational opportunities change lives and we are keen to empower parents to make change to support their children’s future.”

Dan Thorp, Chief Executive of Cambridge Ahead, said: “Empowering parents and young people is vital to ensuring that everyone can benefit from the education and employment opportunities Cambridge provides. We’re delighted to be working with Abbey People, The Brilliant Club, Cambridge City Council and partners across the Cambridge ecosystem to help grow a more inclusive local economy.”

Cllr Rachel Wade, Executive Councillor for Communities at Cambridge City Council, said: “I’m pleased that the council is supporting this extremely worthwhile and inspiring project in Abbey ward that is set to have a real and lasting impact on people’s lives, equipping parents with new skills and enabling young people in Abbey to fulfil their ambitions and benefit from the opportunities available in the city. With more than £100 million proposed to be invested in Abbey in the years ahead, Abbey Parent Power is a great example of the new, collaborative approach the Council is taking with partners to improve life for residents in Abbey and across the city.