MARK EVISON FOUNDATION
Lt Mark Evison died in 2009 from a gunshot wound while serving as a British army officer in Hellmand Province, Afghanistan. He was attempting to get the platoon to safety following an ambush. The Foundation was set up in his memory and his values and character are the driving force within it. The mission is to promote the personal development of young people aged 19 to 25 through undertaking challenges.
Foundation staff typically visit schools in and around London to address sixth-formers in school assemblies. They introduce the charity and extend an invitation to the students to create and plan projects that are personally challenging. Applications must be self-designed and created from scratch for consideration by the charity. For accepted applications, the Foundation provides mentoring and expenses funding up to £500 (£5,000 for Major Awards, usually to groups). Any successful challenge must be well outside the individual(s) comfort zone, non-curricular and non-commercial. Examples of challenges include:
• Creating a Short Animated Cartoon
• Building the Evison Wind Turbine
• The Yorkshire 3 Peaks Challenge
With its emphasis on schools in deprived areas, this young charity has achieved a remarkable reach. In the 2017-18 academic year, the Foundation team delivered Year 12 assemblies in 64 maintained schools in London addressing over 7,500 students. More than 1,600 individuals responded and 225 final applications were received. 67 awards were granted, allowing 253 young people to undertake and complete their challenges. The feedback from participating schools has been very positive, with more schools seeking support from the Foundation.
Find out more about Mark Evison Foundation.