The second week involved them gaining a sense of independent living by staying at the University of Surrey, budgeting and cooking for themselves. During the daytime, they visited elderly care homes and disability centres and used various skills such as media, photography, drama and enterprise to interact with the service users.
In the third week, the team were tasked to create a campaign idea of their choice based on an issue affecting Surrey that they want to change. They came to Sandown to pitch for a pot of money to implement the campaign. I came along to see them rehearse for their Dragon’s Den pitch, to a combination of councillors and business people, later in the week. The team - pictured below - had a great idea for a social media campaign to get youngsters involved in local community initiatives. Phil White (General Manager, Sandown Park) and I tried to give them a few pointers, as they practised their pitch. But, in truth, they combined a smart idea with a very credible presentation. We we very impressed with them, and the NCS.