West Midlands-based charity, Genesis Sun, has been chosen to empower young people in the region to share their views, concerns and challenges around how the education system supports them into the world of work.
The charity, which provides support and mentoring for young people who start life at a disadvantage, has been selected by King’s College London and the Edge Foundation to co-facilitate a workshop in the West Midlands as part of a wider series of knowledge-exchange activities to inform national policy. Genesis Sun was chosen by the “Young Lives, Young Futures” study, because of its extensive expertise in collaborating with 16-25-year-olds in Birmingham and Wolverhampton, particularly those of African and Caribbean heritage, and the work they do to inspire young people into careers and industries where they feel under-represented.
In partnership with the charity Journey to Justice, the workshop will be carried out at the Molineux stadium on Thursday 27th February 2025. It will provide participants with a unique opportunity to reflect on the study’s findings, share their experience of moving from education into employment within a constructive and supportive environment and allow them to raise hopes and concerns about how their education and the support and opportunities available to them may dictate their career direction.
Since 2020, Genesis Sun has worked closely with young people in Wolverhampton, Birmingham and Telford to understand their motivations and aspirations – and runs programmes to introduce them to relatable role models in industries where they are underrepresented. The charity uses innovative and engaging sessions to empower young people to provide valuable, constructive and honest input into a range of exercises and activities – and is highly experienced in generating the right atmosphere for them to open up about their true feelings.
In turn, the YLYF study will benefit from the young people’s insights into how they could be better supported to make decisions about their futures and achieve their aspirations, allowing the study to accurately represent the views of youths here in the West Midlands when drawing up its conclusions and recommendations for policy and practice. Diane Spence, CEO of Genesis Sun says “We’re delighted to be invited by YLYF to inform national research, our strong community of enthusiastic young people want to add their voices to the debate about how education, and other socioeconomic factors, affect their career chances.
“We know that for certain groups, academic achievement is a concern, but we believe that people shouldn’t be defined by their grades. Not everyone wants to – or can – go to university, but that shouldn’t be a barrier for them to get their dream job or for them to have a successful fulfilling career.
“The youth of the West Midlands is ready to represent and provide valuable and constructive feedback” The sessions will be delivered by passionate and experienced members of the Genesis Sun and Journey to Justice teams and will be focused on helping all participants to articulate their thoughts, feelings and worries about their life chances and convey the mood of their peers.
Martin Spafford of Journey to Justice said: “Genesis Sun was chosen for this work owing to the strong community of young people that they have developed, and the vibrant and engaging way in which they work with them to promote careers and life aspirations – they’re the perfect partner!” Sharon Gewirtz, Professor of Education at King’s College London said: “We are delighted to be working with Genesis Sun and Journey to Justice to bring the Young Lives, Young Futures research to young people in the West Midlands.
“Young people’s voices are central to all of our work, and we are looking forward to hearing from the Genesis Sun youth community about their experiences of education and employment and their views on the YLYF research.” Genesis Sun is a charity (formerly a social enterprise) that focuses on inspiring and encouraging young people from the age of 13 throughout their education.
Its goal is to inspire and stimulate fresh and existing talent, innovate thinking and encourage big personal and career aspirations. It was established by Diane Spence who spent over two decades in the IT sector, but who consistently found a lack of diversity and representation in leadership positions, particularly in STEM roles.
She founded Genesis Sun to create positive change, improve social mobility and maximise opportunities for all. Genesis Sun aims to assist young people to believe they can achieve their goals, see who they can be and get the opportunity to network with industry and create a desire for knowledge, while increasing attainment grades and reducing detention and exclusion rates.
