We are really proud to announce a young person from our Wood Grove Children’s home in Essex has been awarded with a Jack Petchey Award!

The Jack Petchey Achievement Award Scheme recognises outstanding young people aged 11-25 across London and Essex. Jack Petchey Achievement Award winners are young people who have gone above and beyond to achieve – perhaps when others thought they might fail.

Each year, they recognise around 12,000 Achievement Award winners and invest £3.5m through the Achievement Award scheme.

Awards mean different things to different people. The Achievement Awards are not solely for academic achievement – they may be used to recognise a personal triumph for someone who has faced a challenge, a young person who has pushed themselves outside of their comfort zone or it may be an opportunity to recognise the outstanding efforts of a team player.

A young person is nominated by their peers in their school or youth organisation. An important part of the scheme is the involvement of young people in selecting the award winners for their hard work and efforts. They want young people to recognise and celebrate the success of their peers.

Each award winner receives a certificate, pin badge and a book from Sir Jack himself. They will also choose how to spend a £250 grant to benefit their school or organisation.

Congratulations, what a fantastic achievement and certainly a reason to celebrate.