Leith pupils gain wellbeing boost thanks to £1,000 Tesco Stronger Starts grant

Pupil Support Officer Craig Maughan and Headteacher Mike Irving of the Leith Academy

• Leith Academy in Edinburgh to receive £1,000 Stronger Starts grant from Tesco
• Grant will enable the school to provide students with a greater chance of leaving school with the confidence, skills, and qualifications they need to succeed
• The grant follows Tesco’s role as partner for The King’s Trust Education Award where the school of the winning pupil receives a grant
• The grant is one of four being given by Tesco to schools across the UK, all of which deliver the King’s Trust education programme, Achieve

Leith Academy in Edinburgh, is starting the school year with a huge boost after it was granted £1,000 from Tesco as part of the retailer’s Stronger Starts scheme.

The grant is in honour of a former pupil at the school, Shakira, winning the regional Tesco Education Award at The King’s Trust and TK Maxx & Homesense Awards earlier this year.

Craig Maughan, teacher at Leith Academy says:

“We are very thankful to Tesco for their generous support of our school. At Leith Academy we respect the diverse nature of our community and understand the different challenges that young people may face. Support from the King’s Trust to deliver Achieve helps us provide young people with a greater chance of leaving school with the confidence, skills, and qualifications they need to succeed in life. The grant will help us to continue to provide tailored support to young people within our school community.”

Leith Academy is a Delivery Partner of The King’s Trust, and delivers the youth charity’s in-school programme, ‘Achieve’. Achieve is a flexible personal development programme designed to support students, like award-winner Shakira, to succeed in education. Young people work together on practical learning projects, designed to boost confidence as well as improving self-esteem, attainment, behaviour and attendance.

Regional award-winner Shakira explains the impact Achieve has had on them:

“I used to find it hard to focus on what I was learning and because I felt I couldn’t speak up I didn’t get the help that I needed. It’s different now that I have confidence in myself and know when to ask for help.

“I’m not so shy anymore and I know how to achieve my goal of working in a nursery. I now volunteer in our school nursery and I would never have had the confidence to do something like that before starting Achieve. I now love working with people and I’ve got the confidence to work with younger children.”

Since 2018, The King’s Trust have been working with Tesco to empower communities across the UK. Tesco primarily support The Trust’s education work, funding the Achieve programme, and contributing to the Education Hub which provides vital resources on topics like mental health and wellbeing, and enrichment opportunities such as world-of-work store tours. More recently, the partnership has expanded to include in-work support for young people during their first three months of employment, helping them transition successfully from education into the world of work.

Alison Cheung, UK & ROI People Director at Tesco, said:

“We’re delighted to be able to support young people with Stronger Starts grants from Tesco which will make a real difference, and provide them access to new programmes and facilities. We were proud to again partner with The King’s Trust Education Award this year, and massive congratulations to Shakira and all the winners who are all working towards a brighter future.”

Stronger Starts, which Tesco runs in partnership with Groundwork UK, provides grants to help schools and community groups working with children provide nutritious food and healthy activities that support young people’s physical health and mental wellbeing, such as breakfast clubs or snacks, and equipment for healthy activities. Grants have also been awarded to three schools across Scotland, Wales and England.

Since it launched in 2023, the programme has provided over £14 million grants to over 14,000 schools and community groups, supporting more than 3.5 million children.

Youth charity The King’s Trust gives young people the skills and confidence to get their lives on track. Three in four young people helped by The King’s Trust in the past five years have moved into work, training or education.