SCOTTISH CHILDREN’S LOTTERY HELPS TRUST LAUNCH NEW EDUCATION HUB

Dundee United Community Trust (DUCT) is delighted to announce the award of £14,482 from STV’s Children’s Lottery as part of their “Chance to Study” grant. The generous funding will allow the Trust to significantly enhance the breadth of education support provided to local schools during the course of the next school year.

The new education hub, based at Tannadice Park, will see the Club’s Community Trust continue to partner with local schools to provide support to specifically targeted pupils with the aim of contributing to increasing attainment in the longer term. 

DUCT Operations Manager Jamie Kirk explains: “Education has been a key part of the activity of the Trust for the past three years and will continue to play a prominent role in our new strategic plan going forward as we aim to enhance the level of support we can provide to schools and pupils in the City.  Having received positive feedback on our hugely popular and successful Tackling Schoolwork and Shoot Back in Time initiatives, we wanted to develop a project which provided concentrated support over a full school year to let us try to understand the longer term benefits we might be able to bring about in terms of engagement and attainment.  We’re really proud to be working in close partnership with many schools in the City and this new batch of funding will allow us to enhance some of these partnerships even further in the coming year.” 

The education hub will see children from local primary schools start their day at Tannadice Park for some breakfast and light physical activity before walking to school together with Trust staff members.  After school the children will come back to Tannadice for support with their homework and a warm meal before heading off home. 

DUCT Project Manager for Education Michael Malone added: “We are delighted to be able to work so closely with the local schools thanks to the support of the Children’s Lottery. Over the past three years we have been able to develop our partnership with Clepington Primary, Dens Road Primary, Our Lady’s Primary, Rosebank Primary and SS Peter and Paul’s Primary schools and with this support we are aiming to contribute to increase the attainment of pupils in each of these schools. Through our Breakfast and Homework Clubs, we will be able to deliver new opportunities to pupils that we haven’t been able to previously, including physical activity before walking pupils to their own school at the start of the day and giving extra support to pupils with their homework after school.  We are really looking forward to getting started for the next academic year.”