Our mission

Adenike Adenitire, Education lead

This Impact Report captures the journey of how a dream to change the lives of young girls with African and Caribbean heritage became a reality. It is not uncommon to hear the expression ‘make a lasting impression’ and wonder whether in reality that is genuinely the case. Often times what is presented as ‘a lasting impression’ proves to be a mere momentary rush of emotional fervour, which fades very quickly once the excitement of the occasion passes.

The story of Inspiring Tomorrow’s Leaders is the opposite. It takes a true visionary to discern the needs of a community and not be afraid to channel thoughts, emotions and strategic thinking into developing a truly amazing programme that addresses those needs. Through the Inspiring Tomorrow’s Leaders programme Michelle Levy has demonstrated such a visionary spirit. Her will to tackle what was perceived as a hidden problem within the African and Caribbean community, demonstrates her deepseated desire to deliver results to the community that are tangible and long lasting.

I’ve admired her creativity, strength of mind and tenacity to form an organisation with the appropriate charity status to grow the programme. Tackling the numerous queries and request for further information from the Charity Commission was soul destroying at times and yet through it all, Michelle was never side tracked from her mission to have a charity that served the special needs she observed in the community. Her ultimate goal to change the dialogue and trajectory of the girls and young ladies meant she was undeterred in a bid for charity status. It was a most joyous moment for me when this charity status was secured in August 2019.

Watching Michelle dive into her rolodex and garner the support of Areté Network, an organisation of black professional women which she co-founded, and later leverage other business and creative associates, along with corporate sponsors, is a story in itself. These are the early days of a truly impressive charity.

As you read this report you will see how Inspiring Tomorrow’s Leaders is making a difference in the community, by leaving a lasting impression on the minds of young girls aged 13 to 15 years old. The expressions of accomplishment and gratitude by the young students interspersed in quotes throughout the report and ending on page 17, helps you understand the thoughts and feelings of the girls as they experienced a truly unforgettable journey during 2019.

Dreams that were never dreamt were created; tales that were never told were shared; friendships that never existed were created; passions that were never experienced were awakened; opportunities and doors that were never envisaged were opened; and smiles that were never smiled started beaming. It was therefore great to see that we were able to increase the number of students participating in the programme from 80 to 100 in 2019.

These changes emphasis the positive impact our programming is having and testifies to the need for further funding to grow this charity. Additionally, we include notes on lessons learned and how we plan to develop the programme further to ensure the impact increases and the programme content remains relevant, while remaining in line with the goals of the charity. This is an account of something that started from humble beginnings and has grown with the help of our key corporate sponsors.

We are very thankful for the trust our sponsors have placed in us and we hope that this report testifies to the seriousness with which we have discharged our charitable duties. Working with Barings to create Financial Education Workshops in partnership with the charity MyBank in 2019, allowed us to add a new dimension to our programme. These workshops were very successful in tapping the potential of 40 students who are interested in persusing careers in the financial services industry. Our professional mentors have contributed many unpaid volunteering hours and for this we are truly grateful. Without their engagement the girls and young ladies would not be able to fully comprehend the many new skills and competencies we introduced to them. But to see these skills and attributes playing out in front of them by these professionals, allowed the students to open their minds to untold possibilities.

It has been a pleasure working with Michelle since the inception of Inspiring Tomorrow’s Leaders and I look forward to another exciting year in 2020 as programme delivery is increased and the brand is built out.