Investing in Young People

Canterbury Academy

We support Canterbury Academy’s Sports Scholarship Programme, which offers financial support to those students competing in sport at a very high level, by an annual donation of £500 in order to help to meet the high costs of training and competing. The club also donates a prize at the Academy’s Annual Graduation Evening.

Club members conduct CV Training and mock job interviews annually with students to help to prepare them for the difficult task of seeking employment at the conclusion of their studies.

Kids Out Days

The club organises an annual Kids Out Festive Fun Day to the pantomime to The Marlowe Theatre in Canterbury for autistic and handicapped children.  In January children from the Oysters Specialist Resourced Provision at Joy Lane School in Whitstable, from St. Nicholas School in Canterbury for pupils with severe learning needs all attended the special “relaxed” performance of Jack and the Beanstalk specifically designed and adapted for children who are autistic and with special learning needs. The club also provides the children from Joy Lane with a Kids Out event in the summer, which this year was to Wingham Wildlife Centre.

Photographs show the children and members of staff from Joy Lane with club members outside The Marlowe Theatre in January 2020 and the children in their seats waiting for the show to start.

Kent Young Carers Project

Young carers supported by the Kent Young Carers Project are also taken to the annual pantomime at The Marlowe Theatre.  Young carers are children whose role caring for other members of their family makes normal childhood activities impossible. They enjoy a backstage visit after the show and meet the stars of the show although no backstage visits have been possible since 2019 due to Covid-19 restrictions. Club members then escort the young carers to PizzaHut to enjoy a meal.