Higgins signs the Care Leaver Covenant

Posted 08/10/2021

As part of its commitment to provide opportunities and engagement with the local communities in which it works, Higgins Partnerships has signed the Care Leaver Covenant, to offer support to care leavers, to improve their life chances, open up opportunities and help them make a successful transition into adulthood.

The national inclusion programme supports care leavers aged 16-25 to live independently, creating meaningful opportunities in five key areas: independent living; education, employment and training; safety and security; mental and physical health and finance.

Steve Leakey, Managing Director of Higgins Partnerships comments, “We are passionate about providing opportunities for all, irrespective of background, gender or ethnicity, and actively work to increase diversity and inclusion within the construction industry.

“By signing this Care Leaver Covenant we are showing our support and commitment to care leavers by providing them with clearer access to career and training opportunities to build a future in the construction industry as well as support their health and wellbeing.”

In July 2016, the Government published a major policy document ‘Keep on Caring’ to support young people from care to independence. A key policy commitment in the paper is a strategic pledge to introduce a Care Leaver Covenant. The Covenant is a promise made by the private, public and voluntary sectors to provide support for care leavers aged 16-25 to help them to live independently.

The aim of the Care Leaver Covenant, to which organisations commit, is to provide additional support for those leaving care; making available a different type of support and expertise from that statutorily provided by local authorities.

Higgins Partnerships was recently named Most Inspiring Contractor at The Inspire Awards 2021. The awards celebrate diversity and inclusion in the UK construction, engineering and housing sector.