PRESS RELEASE: The Property Redress Scheme supports the New Horizon Youth Centre with £5,000 donation

The Property Redress Scheme (PRS) has supported the New Horizon Youth Centre, a charity offering a vital support network to vulnerable and homeless youths aged between 16 – 21, by making a £5,000 donation. Backing the charity, which also helps to educate youths on how to maintain a tenancy, extends the Property Redress Scheme’s efforts to raising standards in the rental sector.

Sean Hooker, Head of Redress for the PRS, and Alexandra McKeown, from Trading Standards Camden Council, visited New Horizon to learn more about the crucial work carried out by the centre and how they can help going forward. They met with their Project Development Manager, Stella Howe and Corporate Partnerships Manager, Estrella Amigo-Valcarce.

Sean Hooker said: “New Horizon Youth Centre is a fantastic organisation that has helped countless young people over the last 50 years. Not only do they provide them a safe environment to spend their days off the street, they provide essential life skills training to get them back on to their feet. I was particularly impressed with their private rented scheme that is successfully supporting young people to find suitable rented homes, providing help to manage their rent and guaranteeing their deposit. This valuable service breaks the desperate cycle many of these kids find themselves in and allowed them to escape from rough sleeping and sofa surfing. The dedicated team also help their clients find jobs and become independent and self-fulfilled individuals. I am proud to support NHYC and wish them a very happy 50th anniversary and further success in the future.”

Stella Howe said: “New Horizon offers loads of different skills, workshops, it has everything you are looking for: accommodation, employment, literary and numeracy and social skills if you are socially awkward like me!  They help you build a bigger support network which is really important when you have to cope on your own. We would like to put the £5,000 towards our catering costs.  We provide a nutritious breakfast and lunch for up to 60 people 365 days a year. This is often the only cooked food our young people will receive that day. We are so grateful for the support from PRS and are looking forward to working with them in the future.”

The Property Redress Scheme and The Trading Standards Camden Council are keen to work with New Horizon Youth Centre over the next year and are already discussing future opportunities such as the Brighton marathon.

A patron of the charity, Jon Snow, has worked at New Horizon since the early 1970's – alongside his career as a journalist and broadcaster. With this, Jon celebrated New Horizons 50^th Anniversary Fundraising BBQ which took place on the 26^th of June at 6.30pm at the Rotunda Restaurant. To find out more information on this click here.