Older people make Grand Mentors

The welfare minister Lord Freud has put £200,000 of his own money to kickstart and properly research a scheme, Grand Mentors, a huge social welfare programme in which teenagers can receive help, support and guidance from older volunteers. As he says, there is a huge army of willing and available older people who have the knowledge and experience to help teenagers in difficulties.

With current plans to overhaul the benefit system, including child benefits, it is becoming more and more essential to guide teenagers into fulfilling work and careers. Often however, they are held back by problems in their lives and this is where sympathetic older people can step in to help them make the often difficult transition into adulthood. It is about helping teenagers discover their own identity and finding their own ways forward in life. The role of the older person is of listening and relating, and meetings are arranged, for example in cafes, where the teenager can open up about their life to a sympathetic listener and be able to confide in someone outside their immediate family circle.

Lord Freud thought of the idea while in the bath, inspired by his own wonderful relationship with his grandfather.

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