The Private Equity Foundation has announced a £2m partnership with children’s charity Place2Be – its largest charity funding award to date.  

Place2Be offers support to children making the transition from primary to secondary school. The funding of up to £2m from PEF will enable the charity to reach an estimated  25,000 further 11 to 14-year-olds by 2018 in 70 secondary schools across the UK.

At present only ten of the 174 schools Place2Be works in are secondary level, so the charity is welcoming the funding to help it extend support to more Key Stage 3 pupils.

A spokeswoman for PEF said that the Place2Be grant will be paid in instalments every six months for the next five years, in varying amounts. A project steering group will meet regularly to review the success of the key operational milestones and the payments will be dependent on these being met.

Benita Refson, chief executive of the Place2Be, said that she was “hugely excited” about PEF’s investment.

“Keeping children engaged with schoolwork at this time is pivotal to helping them steer clear of the Neet [not in employment, education or training] path, instead setting them on a brighter path of hope and prosperity,” she said.

PEF has supported Place2Be for the past six years, providing £736,393 as well as 320 hours of pro bono business support such as advice and strategic planning. During this time the charity has been able to extend its reach into Cardiff, East Lancashire, Manchester and Shoreditch in East London.

The Foundation also funded the head of fundraising role at the charity, which helped double its voluntary income to nearly £3m over the five years to March 2012.

Place2Be was recognised in the Queen's volunteering awards at the end of last year.

PEF's previous largest charity grants were to the NSPCC and City Year – both £1m.  The City Year grant was given in 2009 and is active until summer 2013 and was a start-up grant to bring City Year to London.

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