11 January 2005
HSBC Education Trust is set to become a major sponsor of the UK’s first education academy for 16-19 year olds based on a University campus.
Sir John Bond, Chairman of HSBC Holdings, announced at HSBC’s annual headteachers forum in London, that the Trust will put £1.2 million towards the development costs of the ground-breaking academy.
The announcement followed the news that the British Government’s Department for Education and Skills is releasing funding for a feasibility study into the academy – a partnership between Brunel University and HSBC Education Trust.
The study should pave the way for construction to start on the £17 million academy by Autumn 2005.
The Brunel HSBC Education Trust Academy will hope to increase the number of young people continuing in education in the UK past the compulsory schooling age, by using a pioneering new approach to education.
While the academy will specialise in subjects where there is currently a UK-wide shortage of adequate resources, there will also be a strong emphasis on improving students’ self-esteem and confidence by teaching them leadership, innovation and citizenship skills. The academy’s 800 students will also share access to Brunel University’s resources and subject mentors.
The Government’s Schools Minister Stephen Twigg, said: "I welcome this exciting and innovative proposal.
“Academies are steadily transforming the life chances of children and young people in areas where they have opened. If successful it will be the first Academy dedicated solely to 16-19 year olds, and I hope will prove to be a huge asset for the local community."
The Brunel HSBC Education Trust Academy sponsorship is part of a package of new initiatives aimed at improving the educational opportunities available to young people in the UK.
Sir John Bond also launched HSBC’s first foray into promoting energy-efficiency in schools. The Group has committed £100,000 to help several English schools save money and mediate their impact on the environment by installing new energy-efficient technologies such as wind turbines and specialised generators.
The ‘Carbon Neutral Schools’ pilot project - a partnership with the UK’s Community Renewables Initiative (CRI) – will improve environmental awareness in the participating schools and follows the Group’s announcement in December 2004 that it will offset its own carbon emissions in a bid to become carbon neutral.
