Breaking down barriers – making aviation accessible to all
Scott Pendry
As we look ahead to 2012, one of the key events on our calendar is our ‘Youth in Aviation’ Parliamentary Reception, scheduled to take place on 16th March.
Held under the ‘Youth in Aviation’ auspices, it will be an opportunity for all of the organisations that are involved with youth and aviation to come together under the Air League’s direction to showcase to parliamentarians the valuable work that they undertake.
There is a perception that today’s youth can often be found ‘hanging around on street corners’. Whilst this phrase may seem a cliché, it summarises a problem facing our communities. The lack of a constructive activity to engage in is often cited as the reason why many youngsters find themselves in a negative spiral dive towards an unacceptable view of their obligations to society.
Cutting to the heart of the aims of the organisations involved in the Youth in Aviation event is a desire to tackle this problem head on and to show that an involvement in aviation is not just for the privileged few. It is thanks to the organisations that there are no financial barriers to experiencing aviation at first hand and enjoying the benefits that it brings in terms of personal development.
We’ll aim to showcase the wide variety of schemes on offer – all clearly structured activities that require commitment and determination, attributes that give a terrific sense of achievement and broaden horizons of the young individuals that get involved.
All of the organisations involved in the event, from the Air Cadets and Air Scouts to Aerobility and the British Gliding Association, are conscious that they need to target the youngsters that are on the fringes of society
For a full list of participants, click here.