North East teenagers led an awards ceremony on 6th October, in which a dozen schools representing every local authority in the region were recognised for their outstanding work in changing lives through the NCS scheme.



North East teenagers led an awards ceremony on 6th October, in which a dozen schools representing every local authority in the region were recognised for their outstanding work in changing lives through the youth movement National Citizen Service (NCS).

Macmillan Academy picked up an NCS Star School Award in recognition of its successes in empowering students to take part in the life-changing scheme.
Kim Smith, Contract Director of NCS North East, a partnership of vInspired, National Youth Agency (NYA) and twelve local delivery partners from the voluntary and community sector across the region, said: "In less than a year, young people from the North East have ploughed a staggering 147,000 volunteering hours in to good causes through NCS. That's an economic contribution of just under £1million to the North East economy, based on the minimum wage."

School leadership teams were joined at the NCS North East Schools Awards 2016 by decision makers from the education, youth and voluntary sectors- showcasing local commitment to maximising the benefits of the government-backed programme for young people in the North East.

Jessica Taplin, CEO of vInspired, said: "A huge well done to the winners. They have all shown real commitment and have gone out of their way to ensure that as many of their pupils as possible have had a chance to take part. "We look forward to continuing our work together to make sure that NCS continues to benefit local people and communities right across the region."