At Bringing Words to Life, we love any projects that improve the lives of young people – the more novel, the better. That’s why we were delighted to hear of the ongoing success of project Teens and Toddlers, a project which works with young people from disadvantaged backgrounds to widen their horizons through a mentoring project.

The premise is as follows: teenagers at risk of dropping out of school are chosen and paired with a three- to five-year-old who has been identified as needing extra help, whether due to a disability, learning delay or family situation.

The pair spend time together, with the teen serving as a role model, and learning first-hand about the difficulties of taking care of a young child.

The scheme has been hugely successful, with impact ranging from lowering the teen pregnancy rate of the young people involved to higher GCSE results. Working with young people has far-reaching results, and the successes can continue throughout their whole lives.

We wish this project every success in the future.

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