Saint-Gobain UK and Ireland, the leader in the sustainable habitat and construction markets, is supporting the renovation and opening of a new Prince’s Trust support centre in Glasgow for disadvantaged young adults.
The Saint-Gobain Initiatives Foundation, founded in 2008, has awarded a grant of £99,400 to the Wolfson Centre refurbishment project, as well as providing professional advice on the building and performance of the centre. A wide range of Saint-Gobain products have also been specified throughout the building, including materials from British Gypsum, Celotex, Graham the Plumbers’ Merchant, Jewson and Weber.
Due to be completed in July, The Prince’s Trust Wolfson Centre will be located in the Laurieston area of Glasgow, and will offer the single largest youth employment and enterprise hub in Scotland. With a high unemployment rate in the West of Scotland, the hub will provide one-on-one advice, mentor support, access to ancillary support services and professional business advice to young people in the area. Saint-Gobain will build on this support for The Trust to find ways to continue to help young people after the centre opens, providing training and life skills that are vital to finding a route into long-term employment.
The Saint-Gobain Initiatives Foundation was created in 2008 to support projects that provide employment opportunities for disadvantaged youth, deliver improvements or renovations of low-income housing, and reduce energy consumption in social housing. The Foundation has supported over 95 projects to date, including a €100,000 donation to the Peter McVerry Trust in 2014 and the Wolfson Centre renovation project.
Stuart McKill, Sustainable Habitat Leader in Scotland, said:
“We are proud to be supporting the work of the Prince’s Trust Scotland, a charity that helps young people learn the skills to turn their lives around. Our work will continue with the Prince’s Trust once the project is complete, as we will provide training to upskill young people in the local area, providing employment opportunities to those the Trust helps.
Allan Watt from The Prince’s Trust Scotland, said:
“The Prince’s Trust Wolfson Centre is the first permanent home for the Trust in Scotland, and will allow young people to access every Trust programme under the same roof. We have been working with the construction industry to try and address the current skills shortage. We hope to continue our relationship with Saint-Gobain long after the refurbishment is complete, working together to provide young people with the skills they need to succeed in the industry.”
The Prince’s Trust helps disadvantaged young people between the ages of 13–30 who are unemployed, struggling at school or facing issues such as homelessness or mental health problems.
For more information on the Prince’s Trust in Scotland, visit: https://www.princes-trust.org.uk/about_the_trust/in_your_region/scotland.aspx
For further information on Saint-Gobain, visit www.saint-gobain.co.uk, tweet @SaintGobainUK or Like the Facebook page. #SaintGobain350.
