A HUGELY successful adult education scheme helping people in a deprived Pembrokeshire community has been given a substantial funding boost following a donation from Valero Pembroke Refinery.

Launch Adult Learning provides adult education to Monkton residents, offering accredited and non-accredited courses to remove barriers to finding employment and empower people in the community to gain the confidence and skills to find employment.

With core funding from Communities First shortly coming to an end, the inspirational scheme has been looking to other sources of funding to support the numerous courses available to the community and has now received a donation of £2,000 from Valero Pembroke Refinery.

Kellie Bellmaine from Launch Adult Learning said: “Research has shown that improving adult education has a positive effect on the impact of deprivation on children, such as underachievement, lack of self-esteem and a lack of aspiration.

“Our project has evidence supporting this research, and the success we have had with our adult learners has not only led to major improvements for them as individuals but for their families, young people and other groups across the Monkton community.

“This additional funding from Pembroke Refinery will go such a long way towards ensuring we can maintain the courses and programmes people need to improve their own lives and the lives of their families by getting into employment.”

Following a visit to Monkton Priory CP School, where the project is based, Refinery Public Affairs Manager Stephen Thornton said: “It has been amazing to see the incredible success this scheme has had in helping individuals in Monkton improve their own life chances and those of their families.

“Launch Adult Learning deserves all the praise it has so far received, and Valero Pembroke Refinery is incredibly proud to support these accredited courses that have done so much to help people in our local community find a path into employment.”