Prince William met Skill Force instructors and students at the Tower of London in his first public engagement as the charity’s Royal Patron on Monday, July 6.
Prince William was met by Lord Freeman, Skill Force’s Chairman of Trustees, Peter Cross, Chief Executive, and James Toomey, Operations Director, for a private briefing about the Charity’s work.
The Prince was introduced to Keri-Anne Payne, Olympic silver medal winner and Skill Force Associate Instructor, and escorted to the South Lawn of the historic White Tower where he watched a ‘command task’ activity by young people from the City of London Academy, Islington, under the leadership of Skill Force Instructor, Keith Howlett.
Following the completion of the task, Prince William joined the students for a debriefing before meeting key staff, Trustees and invited supporters from Artemis Investment Management, the Freemasons’ Grand Charity, the John Lyon’s Charity, and Nationwide Building Society.
HRH Prince William of Wales became Skill Force’s Royal Patron in February and has a keen interest in the charity’s work with young people, which employs the world class training, skills and life experience of ex-service personnel as Instructors providing positive role models and inspiring young people to aim higher.
The organization reaches around 9,500 youth per year through partnerships with 260 schools across England, Scotland, and Wales. Special courses, run by veterans, allow for individualized attention for students. Student participants, often identified as at-risk of discontinuing their education, are particularly benefited from the program, and have responded well to the “alternative” learning opportunities provided. Skill Force estimates that the percentage of youth who are not in education, employment, or training has shrunk to 3-6% of all students — versus the projected 23% that would not pursue the same opportunities in the absence of intervention.
Source: Skill Force
